The concept of Airbnb was developed in San Fransisco in 2007 and is now a multi-million-pound industry, which has flourished and is no stranger to Hawick. The Airbnb website states that there are currently 152 homes available for Airbnb in the locality of Hawick.
Airbnb’s have advantages for both guests and property owners. They can offer flexibility to guests and often are cheaper than hotels. In addition to this, they often have cooking and washing facilities which hotels usually don’t offer.
For the Airbnb owner, they can generally achieve a higher rental income than they would do with long-term lets and they can maintain flexibility to use their property when they need to.
Airbnb-style holiday let properties have, until now, been unregulated. The Scottish Government have recently introduced legislation to regulate these properties after concerns have been raised over reduced housing availability, increased rent in the longer-term rental market and the congestion effects on the local community, such as increased traffic, people, and noise.
As of October 2022, local authorities are obligated to establish a short-term letting scheme and existing holiday let property owners will be required to apply for a licence by 1st April 2023. Licensing authorities will have 12 months to determine each application, so all existing short-term let properties in Scotland should be licensed by 1 April 2024. Existing hosts who make an application before 1 April 2023 can continue operating whilst their application is being determined.
The new regulations will require hosts to carry out risk assessments for fire safety, exhibit gas safety certificates and electrical installation condition reports, and hold buildings and public liability insurance. The local authority can introduce additional conditions they feel are needed for the local area. Many of these safety requirements must be in place for private residential tenancy agreements, which are used for long-term lets.
The new regulations will hopefully balance the concerns and needs of the community with the economic benefits of tourism, which Airbnbs can bring to the area.
At Bannerman Burke Law, we would be happy to assist Airbnb owners with any queries they have about the new regulations.
