"72% of Salary Goes to Monthly Rent"... Florence Bans New Tourist Housing

Prohibition on Changing New Tourist Housing Use
Tax Benefits for Long-Term Rental Housing
New York Mandates Short-Term Rental Housing Registration

Florence, Italy's representative tourist city, has taken measures to address 'overtourism' and housing shortages. New regulations on short-term rentals will also take effect next month in New York, USA.

According to Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica and others on the 1st (local time), Florence authorities have banned new short-term housing within the historic district. It is estimated that there are about 8,000 tourist rental homes such as Airbnb currently in the Florence historic district. Existing short-term rental homes in use will remain, but converting homes into tourist accommodations is now prohibited.

Florence, Italy. [Image source=Pixabay]

Florence is a tourist city visited by an average of about 15 million tourists annually. While it generates significant tourism revenue, it has reached a point where it must address the quality of life issues for its citizens.

As homeowners entered the short-term rental business, housing prices soared uncontrollably, and the excessive influx of tourists into limited spaces caused many side effects.

In particular, monthly rents skyrocketed due to reduced housing supply. Statistics show that in Florence, people spend 72% of their salary on monthly rent alone.

In response, Florence authorities decided to ban the conversion of family homes into tourist accommodations and provide tax benefits for long-term rental housing.

Dario Nardella, Mayor of Florence, said, "We know this is a bold measure, but we could not just sit back and watch," adding, "Homeowners who give up short-term rentals for tourists in favor of long-term rentals will be exempt from property tax for three years." This can save about 2,000 to 2,500 euros (approximately 2.83 million to 3.54 million KRW) annually.

Florence is not the only Italian city suffering from the pains of overtourism. The Italian government is also preparing legislation to regulate the short-term housing rental market.

This bill includes fines of up to 5,000 euros (approximately 7.08 million KRW) for homeowners illegally renting homes to tourists during vacation seasons, and mandates a minimum stay of two nights in large cities. Families with three or more children are exempt. Daniela Santanch?, Minister of Tourism, announced that the bill will be submitted by the end of this month.

New York, USA. [Image source=Pixabay]

Meanwhile, there are other places suffering from overtourism. In New York, USA, homeowners who earned higher profits through shared accommodations than through rentals began to stop renting or raise rents, leading to the disappearance of affordable housing in New York, according to The New York Times (NYT) and others.

Starting next month, New York City will require residents who rent out their primary residence for less than 30 days to report the landlord's personal information, rental income, and account details. The city plans to use this information to impose tourism taxes, state sales taxes, hotel taxes, and more.

Fines for violating the regulations can be up to $5,000 (approximately 6.6 million KRW).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.