Whitehorse to consider regulating short-term rentals

Debate on short-term rentals continues this week with the release of survey results from the City of Whitehorse. 

The data was collected in August and September. The majority of respondents, 81 per cent, were Whitehorse residents, with out-of-territory short-term rental operators and short-term rental users also weighing in. 

The city also consulted Indigenous governments and non-profits like the Yukon Anti-Poverty Coalition, as well as organizations like the Tourism Industry Association and the Yukon Medical Association. 

Thirty-nine per cent voted in favour of implementing regulations, while 36 per cent voted to maintain the status quo. 

The city said the findings could be used to develop a regulatory framework to manage short term rentals.

How many short-term rentals are there in Whitehorse? 

As short-term rental operators aren't currently required to hold a business licence in Whitehorse — something 64 per cent of survey respondents say should change — it's difficult to pin down how many there are. 

But from the figures that are available, it would seem people looking for a long term apartment in Whitehorse might have more luck finding a one- or two-night stay. 

According the the Yukon Bureau of Statistics, the vacancy rate for private market rentals in Whitehorse was 1.8 per cent when it was most recently measured in April 2024, with 2,230 private rental units in total, of which only 40 were vacant. 

Market research firm PriceLabs, which collects data from Airbnb and VRBO, puts the number of active Whitehorse short-term rental listings at 260.

AirDNA, another company that offers the same service, reports 218 active listings in Whitehorse.

Ben Pereira, the president and CEO of Whitehorse short-term rental company Neighbourly North, is aware of the figures that show up online, but says the real number of short-term rentals in the city is far lower. 

"The many, many times I've gone to city hall to talk about Airbnb in the city of Whitehorse, the number that I've commonly referenced is 150," said Pereira. "And that references entire home listings within the municipal boundary." 

Pereira appears as a host for 57 listings on Airbnb. On the Neighbourly North website, the company claims to operate more than 60 short-term rental units. The company was one of a number of organizations invited to participate in the city's survey through an interview process. 

"When you filter for entire home properties only, there's dozens and dozens of listings for the Black Spruce Motel. I think the Sternwheeler hostel has a listing, Midnight Sun and other licensed bed and breakfasts, camping sites, trailers, RVs," Perriera said.

However, in an email to CBC, Black Spruce Motel owner Laird Herbert said Pereira's comments weren't accurate.

Herbert said the motel is a "very small operation" with four cabins, and its four listings on Airbnb are motel units, not residential units.

Herbert said he supports restrictions on short-term rentals.

"Airbnb has taken so many rental units off the market," he wrote.

"Building new affordable housing units is incredibly challenging, takes years and is expensive, but restricting short-term rentals is the simplest and most effective thing the city can do to protect existing long-term rental assets."

When CBC sifted through listings provided on PriceLabs and AirDNA and removed duplicate ads, traditional hotels and listings outside municipal limits, and added short-term rental listings that do not appear on Airbnb or VRBO, the number of active listings appeared to hover around 250. 

The majority of these listings offered an entire condo or house.

What does the average short-term rental look like?

A total of 158 short-term rental operators responded to the survey, but less than 40 shared information about the rentals they operate.

According to the city's survey, the most common type of short-term rental in Whitehorse is single-detached homes located downtown. Most operate year-round and act as a secondary investment property. 

The majority of guests are tourists, although visiting professionals are a close second. 

AirDNA said the median Whitehorse short-term rental unit generates around $2,700 a month in revenue. PriceLabs, which uses mean to calculate revenue, reports Whitehorse short-term units make around $3,000 a month.

By comparison, the median price for a long-term rental in Whitehorse in April 2024 was $1,440 a month.

What would regulating the industry look like? 

In the survey, the city requested feedback on a range of policy options, from restricting the number of short-term rentals in residential neighborhoods to limiting the number of days a year short-term rentals can be available to rent. 

The most popular policy options with respondents would require short-term rental operators to obtain a business licence from the city on an annual basis, and include that licensing information in their listings. 

Kate Mechan, executive director of Yukon non-profit Safe at Home, has long been advocating for these kinds of regulations in Whitehorse. Safe at Home was also one of the groups consulted for the city's recent survey. 

"We… had a call to action years ago about regulating short term rentals," said Mechan in an email to CBC. 

Back in 2022, the organization said regulating the industry was one of a number of policies that would help address the housing crisis and reduce homelessness in Whitehorse.

While numerous academic studies find short-term rentals lead to higher rents and housing prices, especially in small and rural areas, the impacts of regulation are less clear.

British Columbia may soon be able to act as a Canadian case study. 

The most stringent requirement being considered in Whitehorse — which would limit short-term rental operators to renting out either their primary residence or a secondary suite on the same property — went into effect in the province this past May. 

In September, in a study commissioned and funded by the British Columbia Hotel Association, McGill professor David Wachsmuth found communities with short-term rental regulations in effect had rent prices decrease by 5.7 per cent and short-term rental listings fall by 16 per cent.

But in Whitehorse, Pereira is confident that implementing similar regulations wouldn't impact access or affordability.

"The vast majority of inventory supplying the short term rental market are of a circumstance where the owners cannot or will not rent them as traditional permanent housing," he said. "Airbnb regulations won't increase the long term rental supply."

A spokesperson with the city of Whitehorse said work is underway to develop different short-term rental policy options, and that there will be more opportunities ahead for public feedback.