Statistics will be updated monthly online

“As more than half of Vancouver’s population rents their home, an increased supply of rental housing is paramount for our residents,” said Mayor Kennedy Stewart

Three months after the short-term rental regulations took full effect on September 1, 2018, efforts by the City to remove illegal units from the short-term rental market are helping to provide more housing for long-term renters. Since April 2018, 963 short-term rental units are no longer advertised.

As of December 9, City staff have opened more than 1,600 case files and pursued the following enforcement actions against suspected unauthorized short-term rental units:

363 investigations and audits

304 warning letters

132 legal orders issued

126 tickets issued

59 units identified for inspection

Three licences suspended

837 case files closed

Short-term rental statistics will be published monthly on our short-term rentals webpage.

Our commitment

“As more than half of Vancouver’s population rents their home, an increased supply of rental housing is paramount for our residents,” said Mayor Kennedy Stewart. “We are committed to ensuring residents have access to the homes they need and can afford, and are pleased these short-term rental regulations are having a positive effect on the City’s long-term rental housing supply.”

City staff continue to investigate and enforce against unauthorized short-term rental activity and are aware of operators with multiple listings who continue to operate. Three of those operators have had their licences suspended, and ordered to cease operations and remove all listings, and are subject to additional audits and inspections.

Additionally, 12 case files were referred to the prosecutor’s office earlier this year against commercial operators with 89 listings:

Five cases, which represent 17 listings, are proceeding to court

One case, which represent 35 listings, is with the prosecutor’s office for further review

Six cases are undergoing additional investigation

Results continuing to increase

“We have created new systems that allow us to investigate and enforce against people who choose to operate a short-term rental outside of the City’s regulations,” said Kaye Krishna, General Manager, Development, Buildings & Licensing. “While the enforcement process can be lengthy and complicated, we are seeing compliance by the majority of operators. Our sophisticated tracking and enforcement system is proving effective, and we are confident results will only continue to increase.”

The City’s short-term rental regulations were established this year to protect long term rentals for those who want to live and work in Vancouver. The rules aim to balance long-term rental housing protection by prohibiting short-term rentals in investment properties while supporting owners and tenants who want to offset high housing costs with supplemental income in their principal residence.

Key facts about the program (as of December 9, 2018)

April 19, 2018 September 5, 2018 November 30, 2018 Active short-term rental listings 6,600 3,742 4,589 Short-term rental business licences issued 0 2,630 3,161

Residents are reminded that when reporting suspected illegal short-term rentals, they must provide both the address with unit number, if applicable, and the listing URL for the City to create an enforcement file.

To report suspected illegal short-term rentals, call 3-1-1, complete the online form, or submit a report through the VanConnect app.

Learn more or apply for a short-term rentals business licence.