Boston housing stock impacted by buy-to-let-on-Airbnb
A Boston Herald review found investors were buying Boston property with a view to renting it on a daily basis through services such as Airbnb, which city officials say is impacting vital housing stocks. The review revealed a small number of large-scale investors who managed hundreds of listings on such services. City Councillor Sal LaMattina called for a hearing on short-term rentals, and officials have discussed requiring people to live either in or near properties they list or placing a cap on the number of days a separate unit can be rented.

Investors are snapping up prime Boston property to rent on a daily basis as “virtual hotels” through web-based services like Airbnb, a Herald review found — and city officials say they are taking desperately needed housing stock off the market.

A Herald review of Airbnb listings in the Greater Boston area and interviews with more than half a dozen large-scale hosts reveal hundreds of listings from real estate management firms and landlords who bought and remodeled second, third or fourth properties apparently just to list on the short-term rental site.

“My issue is investors coming into neighborhoods, buying up properties, and using them as these virtual hotels,” said City Councilor Sal ?LaMattina, who represents East Boston, the North End and Charlestown. “For some landlords, they just say, ‘Hey, listen, it’s easier for me,’ they just rent it out on Airbnb.”

LaMattina — who called for a hearing on short-term rentals last week — said residents with Section 8 housing vouchers in his district are having trouble finding housing because landlords have converted so many units to short-term rentals.

Boston officials have discussed requiring people to either live in or near properties they list, or capping the number of days a separate unit can be rented. Cambridge will hold a hearing on the issue tonight.

In a statement, Airbnb said it is working with local and state officials on possible regulations. The company has signaled in a series of advertisements since the summer it would be receptive to certain regulations as well as the state’s hotel tax.

“In Massachusetts we’ve had a number of collaborative conversations about sensible regulation, fair taxation and we will continue on that path,” Airbnb spokeswoman Crystal Davis said.

Airbnb said 14 percent of its Boston hosts list a residence other than their primary home, and said 15 percent of its Hub listings are rented out for more than 180 days in a year. In the last year, Airbnb has had roughly 4,000 active listings in Boston, and another 2,000 ?in Cambridge.

But in some cases the hosts are actually professional management companies that rent homes from landlords and owners just to list on Airbnb and other short-term rental sites. One company, Spare Suite, rents 15 units in Boston. Another company, San Francisco-based Sonder, lists 116 units in Boston, and 464 units across the country.

Airbnb and similar sites play matchmaker between homeowner and renter, but Spare Suite, Sonder and at least two other companies operating in Boston have found a way to play matchmaker between the property owners and Airbnb.

The companies lease apartments or second homes and effectively redesign and redecorate their interiors to make them more attractive to short-term guests.

Both companies denied contributing to the housing crunch, however, saying they target the luxury market, not middle-class housing.

In New York, a study found Airbnb units were contributing to a housing shortage. Last week, Airbnb banned hosts from listing multiple rentals in New York and San Francisco. The company has not done ?so in Boston.

Dylan Ahrens, a Pittsburgh real estate developer who said he flips houses, lists four properties he owns on Airbnb, including one in Boston he bought a year ago and one in New Orleans.

“I understand where people are coming from, that it might be upping the rent because it’s taking apartments from the market,” Ahrens said. “But the amount of money it’s injecting into the local economy is so much that I think it really trumps a lot of the downside.”