For Victoria’s Angela Mason, the introduction of new province-wide rules around short-term rentals is reviving memories of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Today (May 1) feels a lot like March 18, 2020,” she said. “It feels like I have to close my doors, not because of something that I did, because of something that was mandated for me to do.
“Back then, there were these feelings of confusion, there was concern, there were questions, there was uncertainty and there are a lot of those same feelings today.”
Mason, who purchased a short-term rental in June 2023 and co-owns a business offering host services for short-term rentals (Amala Rental Solutions), made these comments as new rules restricting short-term vacation rentals to primary residences plus one additional unit on the same property came into effect.
They apply to more than 60 communities across B.C., home to much of the provincial population.
Mason expects the changes will have a negative impact on tourism, having already heard from past clients who said they have removed Victoria from their itinerary.
“To stay in a hotel is simply not financially sustainable for them,” she said. “The cost of two hotel nights would essentially be a week in one of our properties and they cannot afford it.”
Mason ultimately predicts that downtown Victoria, one of the top tourism destinations in all of B.C., will become less vibrant. While Greater Victoria businesses might not feel the impacts of fewer visitors right away, they will start feeling them the summer of next year, “when tourists aren’t coming, because they have to stay in hotels,” she said.
“I see hard times ahead for many business owners here in Victoria.”
For Mason, the new rules will have a significant impact on her host services business.
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“My entire family’s income will go to zero by time this is all wrapped up,” she said. “This is a business I have poured my blood, sweat and tears into, all of my energy for the past seven years,” she said. “We rode through COVID. In fact, we grew our business model.”
When government tabled the short-term rental legislation, Mason’s business was looking after 90 short-term rentals, providing various types of services. Mason said her clients are reacting to the new rules in several ways. Some are selling, while others are reserving their properties for friends and families, she said. As for her own short-term rental, Mason said she has no interest in renting out the 500-square-foot unit on a long-term basis.
“I rent my family home, because I can’t afford a family home, but I could afford to get into the real estate market by purchasing a property that I could operate as a short-term rental in a licensed, non-confirming building,” she said. “This is a property has been operating (as a short-term rental) prior to my purchase. It’s not suitable for people to live in.”
Government has justified the new rules with the need to create housing, a point made again Monday (April 30) by Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon.
“Short-term rentals are still available in communities,” he said, adding people had until May 1 to make changes following the introduction of the legislation in October. “We need to prioritize housing for people in our communities,” he said. “That’s what we’ve been clear about since we introduced legislation and we expect that to kick in tomorrow.”
Mason said this government had seven years time to create more housing. She is also not taking the changes lying down.
Mason has signed on to be the representative party in a legal petition seeking to invalidate some parts of the new provisions.
The suit is being brought by Amala in concert with a group called the West Coast Association for Property Rights, and the costs are being borne jointly by a group of property owners affected by the law.
-with files from Mark Page