This study only names Airbnb. There are many more short term rental companies. I'll guess that Airbnb garners 20% of the market. For a true picture of the effects of short term rentals, multiply these published numbers fivefold! Something else to think about. Landlords are forced into the short term rental industry by...... economics! Real estate, insurance, repairs, maintainence, everything keeps increasing in costs. And in Tofino B.C. it's gone through the roof!! Water, sewer, property taxes continue to rise at rates that any economist will tell you are simply not sustainable. Not important to know which straw will break the camels back, you just need to know that his back can, and will, break. Foreclosures? Families forced out of town? Businesses that cannot find employees? Common people who cannot find an affordable place to live? Social discord as one segment of the population points fingers at another, placing blame for the situation? No commercial premises available for enterpraneurs? No growth? No hope for future endeavors? No parking? Shortage of water? We already see some or all of these circumstances existing here. Is this the Tofino we want our kids to grow up in? to try to find a future in? What can we do about it all? Maybe a major re-think is required. What would happen if...... All the money being pumped into Tourism Tofino, for advertising and promotion, was instead pumped into our infrastructure and housing needs? Do we really need more visitors? We don't seem to have the proper facilities to look after those we have now, let alone troll for even more. We've created a monster. It's going to be a difficult beast to tame. But tame it, we must. Before none of us can any longer afford to live here.
This study only names Airbnb. There are many more short term rental companies. I'll guess that Airbnb garners 20% of the market. For a true picture of the effects of short term rentals, multiply these published numbers fivefold!
ReplyDeleteSomething else to think about. Landlords are forced into the short term rental industry by...... economics! Real estate, insurance, repairs, maintainence, everything keeps increasing in costs. And in Tofino B.C. it's gone through the roof!! Water, sewer, property taxes continue to rise at rates that any economist will tell you are simply not sustainable. Not important to know which straw will break the camels back, you just need to know that his back can, and will, break.
Foreclosures? Families forced out of town? Businesses that cannot find employees? Common people who cannot find an affordable place to live? Social discord as one segment of the population points fingers at another, placing blame for the situation? No commercial premises available for enterpraneurs? No growth? No hope for future endeavors? No parking? Shortage of water? We already see some or all of these circumstances existing here. Is this the Tofino we want our kids to grow up in? to try to find a future in?
What can we do about it all?
Maybe a major re-think is required.
What would happen if...... All the money being pumped into Tourism Tofino, for advertising and promotion, was instead pumped into our infrastructure and housing needs? Do we really need more visitors? We don't seem to have the proper facilities to look after those we have now, let alone troll for even more.
We've created a monster. It's going to be a difficult beast to tame. But tame it, we must. Before none of us can any longer afford to live here.