Hundreds of homeowners are listing rental properties on Airbnb as if they were their primary residence, when in fact they are not, a study has found. The newspaper. A stratagem facilitated by the cities and the Ministry of Tourism who turn a blind eye.
In the midst of the housing crisis, these false primary residences amplify the shortage of apartments in large cities.
The newspaper noted the extent of the problem by analyzing thousands of listings on the Airbnb platform with an official registration number for a primary residence establishment throughout Quebec.
According to Tourist Accommodation Actthe person who rents a primary residence should reside there “in a habitual manner, centralizing his or her family and social activities there”.
- Listen to the explanations of journalist Dominique Cambron-Goulet via OLD :
But our survey shows that many of them have never lived there or have not lived there for several years.
In particular, we discovered that:
- Dozens of couples each declare a different address as their primary residence;
- Business partners each register a principal residence, but operate all of these establishments together;
- Airbnb owners or hosts use the same primary residence registration number up to 12 times for separate listings;
- Hosts steal valid numbers from residents of other municipalities.
Easy to get a license or even several
Two members of a married couple each registered an address in this building in the Ahuntsic district as their “primary residence”. PHOTO DOMINIQUE CAMBRON-GOULET, JDM / SCREENSHOT FROM AIRBNB
These permits were obtained without proof of address being requested and with disarming simplicity.
We also came across a few owners in luxurious houses miles from their “main residence”.
Many ads were also removed after questions from the Journal.
Around 150 people have even registered with the Ministry of Tourism as operators of two or even three main residences.
In the Quebec region, a man named Gabriel Brunette-Savard even appears four times on the list, always with different partners.
These people were able to register at several addresses, sometimes next to each other, sometimes in different municipalities, without the ministry raising a flag.
“The definition of principal residence provided for in the Tourist Accommodation Act does not allow the same individual to have more than one main residence,” confirms Jean-Manuel Téotonio, spokesperson for the Ministry of Tourism.
The minister, Caroline Proulx, refused to grant us an interview on the issue.
The ministry denies having granted several permits to the same people “by means of a strict and rigorous verification process.”
“Of course, this assumes that the applicant discloses truthful information as part of their registration process,” says Mr. Téotonio.
“A colander”
“It’s a real sieve. The regulations are too easy to circumvent,” says the spokesperson for the Regroupement des committees logement et associations de tenants (RCLALQ), Cédric Dussault.
Cedric Dussault, RCLALQ
Photo Clara Loiseau
“What this has as a consequence is that we have a net loss of housing which would be available for long-term rental, but which is going to tourist residences.”
According to Cloé St-Hilaire, doctoral student at the University of Waterloo and specialist in short-term rentals, “determining a primary residence, we are seeing that it is extremely difficult. There is a level of analysis and effort that needs to be done and I don’t believe that at this time it is done,” she said.
Airbnb was unable to comment on our specific cases, but noted that it is the cities and the CITQ that grant permits.
“Airbnb is following the system put in place by the Quebec government. No other municipality or province has such a cumbersome and redundant system,” said spokesperson Matt McNama.
The two accommodations in this duplex in the Mercier district of Montreal have been transformed into rooms which are rented on Airbnb thanks to a “primary residence” permit PHOTO DOMINIQUE CAMBRON-GOULET, JDM / SCREENSHOT FROM AIRBNB
What is a primary residence on the platforms?
Since March 2023, all Quebecers can rent their main residence short term, on a platform like Airbnb.
All you need to do is obtain a registration number from the Corporation de l’industrie touristique du Québec (CITQ), an organ of the Ministry of Tourism.
According to Tourist Accommodation Act“a principal residence is the residence where a natural person habitually resides by centralizing their family and social activities and whose address corresponds to that which they indicate to most government departments and agencies”.
To prohibit or restrict such rentals, cities can pass regulations that must be approved by a citizen referendum.
