Comptroller Says Airbnb Cost New Yorkers $616 Million In Rent
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - According a report by the city's comptroller office, New Yorkers are losing $616 million due to higher rents driven by Airbnb rentals.
Renters in the neighborhoods of Murray Hill, Gramercy, Stuyvesant Town, Williamsburg, and Greenpoint "pay an average of more than $100 per month in additional rent due to Airbnb listings," according to a report by Comptroller Scott Stringer.
New Yorkers who do not occupy an apartment on a short-term basis take those units off the rental market, shortening supply.
According to Stringer, the Airbnb impact from 2009 to 2016, showing for every 1 percent of a neighborhood listed on sharing by the company, the price of rent goes up 1.58 percent.
The calculated $616 million figure accounts for rents in New York City for just 2016 alone.
Specific increases by borough were:
* BROOKLYN: Up by 35% ($340 per month)
* QUEENS: Up by 22% ($242 per month)
* THE BRONX: Up by 21% ($171 per month)
* MANHATTAN: Up by 19% ($276 per month)
* STATEN ISLAND: Up by 14% ($129 per month)
A previous study by researchers at McGill University in Montreal found that the home-sharing company is driving up rental prices and reducing housing availability due to so-called "ghost units" not made available to residents of New York City.
"For years, New Yorkers have felt the burden of rents that go nowhere but up, and Airbnb is one reason why," said Stringer. "From Bushwick to Chinatown and in so many neighborhoods in-between, affordable apartments that should be available to rent never hit the market, because they are making a profit for Airbnb."
According to Bloomberg news, Airbnb Inc. disputed the study's findings, calling them "wrong on the facts" and containing "substantive issues with the methodology." The company also said the data came from AirDNA, an analytics company separate from Airbnb, Inc.
About half the Airbnb listings were found to be from units in Manhattan, especially in Midtown and lower Manhattan neighborhoods such as Chelsea, Greenwich Village and Soho. The next most popular listing spot was Brooklyn, with about 35 percent of NYC Airbnb listings.
Last year, Airbnb hosts claimed the city was colluding with opposition groups to spy on their properties using "undercover renters" using the service.
