Short term landlords demo - not my kind of protest
Protests over short-term let licensing in Scotland - in the media, outside Holyrood - are doing nothing to lessen the social stigma of being an Airbnb host. I am one myself and I cringe at their self-serving rhetoric and apparent lack of understanding of the bigger picture.
Did you see the clip on Edinburgh Live of a woman talking about ‘a pogrom’ against short-term landlords? That has to be up there with one of the most egregious and offensive comparisons ever with the persecution of the Jews. What about the woman who said she only owned two or three flats in Edinburgh’s Old Town, adding: “these are not places that people would want to have domestic housing. ”
What? My mum Sandra lived in the Old Town for a decade or more, my sister spent most of her teenage years there and I lived there for a year or so in my 20s. We loved it. When we lived there, having “a hing oot the windae” was still a thing. It was better than the telly, looking out at the street below and plenty of folk used to do this - as they had done for centuries.
We had wonderful neighbours - Nell Dunn and Kennny Skeele who were regulars at the Vigil for a Scottish Parliament. The Bells, a brother and sister well into their 70s who lived on the top floor and would run up and down the stairs, a tenement lifestyle having kept them fit. A first-floor flat belonged to St Giles, and I once introduced the resident minister at one of our many parties to a friend whose ice-breaking conversation starter was: “So, do you believe in God?”
That flat was great for parties – especially at Hogmanay. The centre of town was not cordoned off in those days and friends would show up and ring our bell, sometimes with instruments. We had a grandstand view of fireworks and processions - the police came in to check up on our flat before they paraded the Stone of Destiny down it in 1996 - perhaps in case Sandra planned to abseil down on a knotted sheet and steal it from the royal Landrover.
There were challenges of course. There were students who played loud music at anti-social hours - students were the main gripe in tenements in those days. It was sometimes easier to buy a tartan scarf than a pint of milk - although our friends Angelo and Catherine di Placido had a great deli right on the High St.
Later, driving up from London to visit, with two tiny children, I sometimes arrived when nobody was home. Transferring babies, travel cot and essentials from a car parked several streets away was a challenge. But there was a sort of community there in those days, neighbours were often on hand to help. And the Old Town was good value for money - it was not as pricey as other parts of town.
The flat where we lived is a short term let now. I walked past our stair recently and there were 11 key safes on the door frame. There are too many Airbnbs in Edinburgh - and also in many other beauty spots across Scotland. What started out as a small scale home-sharing platform became a huge regulatory loophole that has been overexploited. It has taken the law a long time to catch up.
It is difficult to regulate this sector - many cities have tried it and failed. That is why everyone who does short-term lets in Scotland is being asked to fill out the licensing form - even people who only let out a spare room at Festival time. If, as some commentators have suggested, home-sharing were to be exempt, then people would tend to tick that box and it would be very hard for the authorities to check up. Friends recently stayed in Paris in what was advertised as a home-share but it was clearly a flat used entirely for short-term let, in disguise as it were.
In Edinburgh and Highland council areas there are temporary STL licences available for people who only want to let out their place for a few weeks a year. You still have to comply with most of the regulations - the main difference is that neighbours don’t get a chance to object. The licensing process should not cost “thousands” as the Times Scotland claimed recently - unless your appliances or wiring fail the tests. A friend of a friend watched a YouTube video and did the legionella assessment himself - in fact, quite a lot of this is self-certified. But signing your name to a legal document puts the onus on the landlord to comply - whereas at the moment it is an absolute free-for-all. I met someone who owned a dozen flats accommodating hundreds of guests - that is an unlicensed hotel.
For people who just rent out their spare room in the Festival, income up to £7,500 a year is untaxed under the rent a room scheme. That tax break was put in place to encourage people to rent a room to a lodger in order to help with the housing crisis - the fact that it also applies to home-sharing Airbnb income is a loophole. It is a loophole that many facing the cost of living crisis and high energy bills are very grateful for. But I think the howls of rage over having to get electricity and gas tests and so on are overdone. It is a quid pro quo.
Lots of people - on social media and IRL - look askance at Airbnb hosts now and I understand why. It has acquired a sort of cowboy image. The growth of STLs has certainly contributed to the housing crisis both in the town and the country. Saying you hold your pension in property doesn’t go down well - people blame you because their kids can’t find a flat. Arguably these askance-lookers are hypocrites - anyone who holds pension assets in general funds is almost certainly investing in fossil fuels - by the same token, they will be to blame when the water levels rise.
However, it will be a good thing if STLs are regulated effectively and their numbers fall. It may make being an Airbnb host socially acceptable again. A combination of mortgage rates and the new regulations is already reducing the number of holiday lets. Even before this has come into force, a quick scout of ESPC reveals that there are quite a lot of flats for sale in the Old Town which appear to be ex-Airbnbs - some of them with key features like a view of the Castle or Arthur’s Seat. It is becoming a buyers’ market. And money has been spent on these places - they have new kitchens, double glazing and the rooves seem to be in reasonable condition. I hope the people who buy these flats will make them their homes, and enjoy living within the sound of the Tattoo fireworks and angry landlords demonstrating outside the Scottish Parliament.
Thanks for the mention Jackie. Very good article 😊
A good read.