Airbnb urges Barcelona to reconsider crackdown on tourism rentals

The only winner from Barcelona's war on short-term rentals is the hotel industry, Airbnb claims

Airbnb has called on the mayor of Barcelona to reconsider the city's increased crackdown on short-term rentals, saying the policy primarily benefits the hotel industry while failing to address issues like overtourism and the housing crisis.

Key takeaways

• In June, Barcelona unveiled plans to eliminate all short-term rentals by 2028 in an effort to curb rising housing costs for residents. The proposal is currently being challenged in court;
• In a letter to city officials, Airbnb argued that policies implemented since 2014-such as strict limits on new tourist lodging licenses in central areas-have not produced meaningful results;
• "A decade later, official data shows that despite a decline in the number of short-term rentals, the challenges of housing affordability and overtourism have only gotten worse," Airbnb said.

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