From: Neighbours Speak Up <neighboursspeakup@gmail.com>
Subject: Update: May 26/20 - New Provincial Regulation a Set-back for Control of Commercial Short-term Rentals in Residential Areas
Date: May 26, 2020 at 2:25:57 PM ADT
To: undisclosed-recipients:;
Bcc: mreardon@ns.sympatico.ca

Hi everyone,

The provincial government recently announced a Regulation that would accompany the Assessment Act, Bill 99, that was passed in March 2019. That Bill dealt with the taxation status of 'small scale tourist accommodation'.  This type of tourist accommodation would be taxed on a Residential basis not a Commercial rate, which is approximately four times more.  What was left un-defined at the time was the "type of lodging" that would benefit from this provision. Here is the relevant section of the original Act.

SMALL-SCALE RESIDENTIAL TOURIST
ACCOMMODATION ESTABLISHMENT

	•	47A (1) In this Section, "small-scale residential tourist accommodation establishment" means a residential tourist accommodation establishment on the assessable property that is not a hotel, motel or apartment hotel, but includes a primary residence, cottage, cabin, bed and breakfast, inn or other similar type lodging, as defined in the regulations, that is fully or partially rented to provide accommodation to the travelling or vacationing public. (2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, a small-scale residential tourist accommodation establishment is residential property. 
2 Subsection 179(1) of Chapter 23, as amended by Chapter 3 of the Acts of 2001, Chapter 10 of the Acts of 2004 and Chapter 16 of the Acts of 2012, is further amended by adding immediately after clause (bh) the following clause:'

	•	(bi) prescribing the number of rooms and other criteria for the purpose of defining a small-scale residential tourist accommodation establishment pursuant to Section 47A;

On May 8/20 the Royal Gazette reported that the following Regulation, defining 'small-scale residential tourist accommodation' had been passed by Order in Council. Here is the relevant section, for our purposes. 
Small-Scale Residential Tourist Accommodation Establishments Regulations
Citation 1 These regulations may be cited as the Small-Scale Residential Tourist Accommodation Establishments Regulations.
Number of rooms prescribed for definition of “small-scale residential tourist accommodation establishment”.
2 For the purpose of defining a small-scale residential tourist accommodation establishment pursuant to section 47A of the Assessment Act, the number of rooms in a small-scale residential tourist accommodation establishment that may be rented to the travelling or vacationing public to provide overnight sleeping accommodation is 4 or fewer.
 
Impact of the Regulation on Short-term Rental Operation and Residential Communities:
I have contacted the Department of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the sponsor of this Regulation, for more details. Are there any limits on the number of guests per room or unit?  Is it restricted to 'primary resident' owners?  Can an owner have multiple properties? I was advised by Grant MacEachern, Senior Policy Analyst with the Department as follows, 
"The regulations do not take into account who is offering the rooms or units for rent or the number of guests in a room or unit.  
 
The room limit applies to rentable units on an assessable property.  As long as there are no more than four rooms being rented on an assessable property, a property will be classified as residential for taxation purposes. This means that an owner can have multiple properties offering four rooms or less and still be classified as residential. 
 
It is important to note that Section 47A of the Assessment Act and the accompanying regulations classify properties for the purposes of property taxation only and do not impact municipal zoning."
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Our focus from the start of this campaign has been to limit the presence and increase of commercial-style short-term rentals in our neighbourhoods, apartment buildings and condominiums. We had hoped and urged both Province and municipalities to limit short-term rentals to primary resident owners only,  limit the number of rooms and guests in short-term rental accommodation and designate short-term rentals, where there is no primary resident operator, as 'commercial' properties.  We had hoped that might help to zone these businesses out of residential areas and properties.
 
As you can see in the comments from the Province, the responsibility for any limitation on short-term rentals has been transferred to municipalities.  We must now ask,  if the province considers a small-scale tourist accommodation with four or fewer rooms "residential",  even if not operated by a 'primary resident', will the municipalities be willing and able to restrict their use in residential areas? 
 
At present there appears to be minimal use of short-term rentals, at least for tourism. The platforms, such as Airbnb, have seen a major decrease in business.  In some communities, here and abroad, some of these properties have been freed up for long term rentals.  Communities, that have been hit hard by Airbnb and others, are using this time to reclaim some of the housing that was occupied by short-term rentals and bring in regulations that will prevent the impact on housing, rents and community health and safety.  
 
While the opportunity for short-term rentals has dissipated  there are certainly many listings out there. The financial gain for many in this business has been great and the incentive to return will be great as tourism slowly returns. Paying only "residential" taxes will add to that incentive.  It will be important for governments at all levels to ensure public tourism objectives and private gain do not trump public health, residential integrity and safety and our need for affordable long term housing.  They have to change their approach from 2018/19 to our present reality. Trip Advisor will not protect us.
 
Here in HRM the Community Planning and Economic Development Committee began work on short-term rental policy prior to the Covid-19 shutdown. Hopefully the findings from their public survey and report will come forward in the next month or so. We will continue to inform and monitor their work as well as the province.
 
Your ideas and suggestions are always welcome. Thanks to all for sending along information, advice, articles and observations from your neighbourhoods.
 
Bill Stewart
for Neighbours Speak Up
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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