DC City Council Regulates Airbnb and Gets Thanks from Community Leaders in Local Ad Campaign
WASHINGTON, DC –The new D.C. short-term rental ordinance that was unanimously passed by the D.C. City Council last year to implement major short-term rental protections to safeguard housing and neighborhoods, moves forward after the D.C. mayor decided this week to let the ordinance become law.
The bill will protect permanent D.C. housing by preventing outside commercial investors from buying up properties across the city and converting them into short-term rentals like Airbnbs.
It’s Time, D.C., a coalition of local community groups, civic organizations, labor leaders and residents, are launching an ad today thanking the city council for passing this ordinance to protect the city’s affordable housing stock and permanent residents.
Kelly Sweeney McShane, president and CEO of Community of Hope in D.C., voiced her support of the recently passed bill, saying, “Protecting affordable housing options in D.C. is vital to our efforts in ending homelessness and helping low-income families find a stable, affordable home. We praise the city council for pushing this important issue forward to not only safeguard housing for the families we serve in D.C., but also relieve the pressure short-term rentals cause on the cost of housing citywide.”
D.C. is the latest in a string of major U.S. cities to pass short-term rental regulation, joining Los Angeles, Boston, San Francisco and New York City, all of which passed similar bills in 2018.
“Chairman Mendelson and Councilman McDuffie should be commended for putting forward a common-sense ordinance that protects true home-sharing, while cracking down on commercial investors buying up residential homes to rent on Airbnb,” said Graylin Presbury, President of the D.C. Federation of Civic Associations said about the ordinance. “Our group applauds the entire city council for passing this ordinance unanimously to protect our neighborhoods and housing options.”
We want to thank the city councilmembers, vocal community leaders and residents in D.C. who worked tirelessly to pass this vital legislation that will protect housing options for permanent city residents and safeguard our neighborhoods.
