Nearly 80% of Japan’s Airbnbs Removed in Response to New Home-Share Law

And then there were 13,800. That’s how many Airbnbs are left operating in all of Japan, after the home-sharing site removed at least 62,000 homes, apartments, and rooms this weekend from its inventory, reports Japan’s Nikkei newspaper. The move is in response to the country’s new home share–or minpaku—law that comes into effect June 15, requiring Airbnbs be registered with the government and limited to a certain number of rented days.

It’s the first of what could be many international culls, as Parisian courts prepare to rule on the legality of more than 40,000 listings later this month. Japan has been cracking down on the largely unregulated home-sharing giant over the past year, as more and more tourists flock to the island country. As of next week, hosts have to register for permission to share their home with the federal government, under the hotel and ryokan laws that promote fire and emergency safety.

Hosts also won’t be able to rent out their homes for more than 180 days a year. While the rules seem strict, and involve a little legwork on the host’s part to get a registration number, it’s a better system than what exists now: a grey area where any Airbnb could run afoul of complicated (and sometimes non-existent) local laws. ‘We have long-supported the home sharing law in Japan, we worked with the government to craft it, and we believe it will help more people share their homes on Airbnb.

The lack of clear rules for home sharing has made many people reluctant to take the next step and host. The law in Japan solves that problem,’ Airbnb said in a statement.

Source: cntraveler.com