"I'd ban their whole operation": Tiny sticker highlights huge crisis
From advertisements to artwork there’s no escaping stickers on street poles, but one that was spotted in Melbourne has made waves, calling out a glaring issue that is impacting so many Australians.
The sticker in question was stuck to a traffic light in Melbourne and appears to take aim at homeowners who are worsening the national housing crisis by listing their properties as short-term Airbnb stays rather than long-term rentals.
The sticker, shared to social media reads, “You wouldn’t open an Airbnb in a housing crisis” a spoof of the mid-2000s ‘Piracy. It’s a crime.’ public service announcement that was played before movies.
Images of the sticker have been shared across a number of social media platforms, with many people quick to praise the “genius” DIY PSA and requesting copies to stick around their suburbs on lockboxes in their own apartment complexes.
While some found the funny side of the message, others were more critical of the sticker calling out landlords and Airbnb.
“You wouldn’t incentivise opening an Airbnb by making it less onerous and more profitable than renting out your property,” someone said.
“Course they would,” another responded. “The ‘f**k you, got mine’ mindset is getting stronger.”
“If I had my way I’d ban their [Airbnb] whole operation overnight.”
The issue of short-term holiday letting and the growth of Airbnb across the country is that it's eating up potential long-term rentals, which is a
The calls come amid the rental crisis in Victoria, with vacancy rates reaching a record low of 0.8 per cent in Melbourne in April 2023, which is one of the better rates recorded across Australia as new rental listings dropped by 18.9 per cent.
The only capital city to have rental vacancy above one per cent is Canberra, at 1.6 per cent. While Adelaide holds the tightest rental market with a mere 0.3 per cent vacancy. Perth is close behind at 0.4 per cent.
Sydney’s new listings fell by 17 per cent in April 2023 and 5.1 per cent in the past year while Melbourne dropped by 20.8 per cent in the span of a month, and 17.9 per cent in the past year, according to PropTrack.
The NSW government introduced regulations to limit the time a property could be on the market to 180 days a year. The Victorian Greens have called on the Andrew’s government to strip it to 90 days.
A similar, “tourism tax” has been introduced to cities overseas, where a small payment is added to the guest’s bill in certain tourism hot spots each night in a big to funnel money back into local communities’ infrastructure.
Airbnb told The Age that a statewide tourism levy was the preferred way to regulate the industry as it is more consistent than a council-by-council approach.
“We believe tourism levies are a fair and sustainable way to raise revenue for local communities, especially in areas of high tourism, as they broaden the revenue base without imposing an additional burden on local ratepayers or businesses,” Airbnb Australia and New Zealand’s head of public policy Michael Crosby told the outlet.
Speaking to news.com.au, Airbnb's country manager for Australia and New Zealand Susan Wheeldon said the platform had proposed a series of measures to “help build stronger communities, foster sustainable tourism growth, and equip governments across Australia with tools to help address important issues, such as housing affordability and amenity”.
It included a statewide registration scheme to document new listings, introducing consistent Codes of Conduct for guests, hosts, and communities, as well as support for government reviews of eviction protections.
“Airbnb is keen to work together with a broad range of stakeholders and help play a part in helping to provide meaningful solutions and tackle the issue of housing supply and affordability,” Wheeldon said.
“While short term rentals generally comprise a tiny proportion of the overall property market, we’re keen to keep finding ways that we can make a positive contribution to this important issue.”
Image credit: Reddit