Question: An apartment in our building appears to be operating as short-term rental accommodation without the owner notifying anyone. How can we identify which unit is being advertised?
An apartment in our building appears to be providing short-term rental accommodation (STRA). Our strata manager has not been notified of any apartment providing that service. We have located a registration that appears to match our building, but we cannot be certain which apartment it corresponds to.
We contacted Planning NSW with the STRA registration to request identification of the apartment, but they will not release any information and directed us to our local council. The council said that if we suspected non-compliance by the premises, we should advise them. The problem is that we cannot identify the premises.
While we have a by-law prohibiting Airbnb-type rentals, it is unenforceable if we can’t identify the apartment. The code of conduct that applies as part of registration requires that the strata manager and immediate neighbours be notified of the short-term rental. Who should we contact to identify the specific unit?
Answer: Start with the strata roll and the listing itself, but consider whether enforcement is worth pursuing if no issues have occurred.
There are a few elements to this situation, and not all are encoded in strata legislation and/or planning laws.
However, it is important to cover off how the strata legislation relates to short-term rental accommodation. The relevant section of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW) is section 137A, and this states that a by-law in relation to short-term rental accommodation does not apply “if the lot is […] the principal place of residence of the person who, pursuant to the arrangement, is giving another person the right to occupy the lot.”
I don’t know the specific terms of the by-law in place, but if the host can prove that the lot in question is their principal place of residence, I doubt much can be done to prevent the lot being used for short-term rental accommodation.
As far as identifying the lot, you’ll need to use other sources of information. For example:
- Most short-term rental accommodation sites mention the owner’s first name. Does this match one or more lot owners on the strata roll?
- Do photos in the listing indicate the lot’s outlook, or which level the unit is on?
- Scour the listing/s for any potentially identifying information you can determine, including in the description.
- You may be able to narrow the potential set of lots the listing relates to.
However, the other question is whether any disturbance or other issues is being caused by the listing itself.
While I understand the desire to enforce the by-law in place, have there been any issues to date?
If not, is it worth your and/or the committee’s and/or the strata manager’s time and effort to police the by-law?
You may wish to still do the “detective work” to try to identify the lot, but often, it’s only after issues occur that you can get traction to take action on such a situation.
This post appears in Strata News #801.
Sean McNamara
Select Strata Reports
E: sean@selectstratareports.au
P: 0414 920 726
If it’s an “unhosted” STRA, it’s quite likely that the host is not the owner of the unit, but an opportunist who has leased the unit and then listed it on STRA platforms.
If you have a building manager, they should be able to identify the unit.
Access to all units for the annual fire inspection is also an opportunity to identify the unit.
If your building has access control and security camera systems, these can be utilised.
Security cameras can be reviewed for people who look to be STRA guests, such as unknown people arriving/departing with luggage. Match the footage to your access control log to identify the unit by the access fob number used.
Or if you happen to spot such people on common property, badge your fob (to mark the date and time on the access control log), then review the log to see which unit badged their fob immediately prior to you.
Notify all SC members and trusted residents to report suspicious activity to BM or SC.
Look for key boxes attached to your building or nearby.
If it’s a “hosted” STRA, they are still subject to a 180 day per year cap (under the state government STRA Mandatory Code of Conduct. You may be able to use screenshots of Airbnb booking calendar plus the building’s access control log to prove the host is exceeding the cap. You could then report their property to the local council as a “non complying development” for the local council for action. The reality is that state and local laws in this area are ineffectual by design.
Hi Sean,
We are a strata village with a bylaw that limits rental to 12 months. However our village manager’s holding company is pursuing a policy of acquiring strata independent units for long term lease. Given their existing ownership of some of the assisted living units they currently have minority voting rights.
What regs/rules are available to protect the existing strata owner/occupiers and prevent any further aquistion of strata units for conversion to long term lease ?
Once they acquire majority control we fear the worst.