Cabinet councillor Adam Harrison wants to see action on short lets

THOUSANDS of properties in Camden are still being marketed as lucrative short stay accommodation for tourists – rather than providing homes for those struggling amid London’s housing crisis.

Deputy council leader Labour councillor Adam Harrison said more than 6,000 were being used in this way, as he spoke at last night’s (Monday’s) full council meeting about his frustration that the owners were “flying under the radar” and evading planning enforcement.

He said he wanted short let companies – perhaps the most famous is AirBNB – to share data which showed how properties were being used. People are only allowed to let out flats and houses in this way for 90 days a year, but many are going beyond this limit to cash in on the market.

The changing nature of how people book holiday stays has disrupted the traditional hotel model. With prices high in London, tourists look for cheaper alternatives by staying in people’s homes instead. This was made easier by the rise of internet sites that link people offering rooms or properties with those looking for a place to stay.

Councils, however, say the rush to make money has depleted the amount of accommodation which could be used to soothe demand for homes and the scramble for private rentals amid reduced availability.

There have also been warnings that a transient use of property means those staying for a few days have no bond with the local community. Cases of flats being booked for the purpose of parties or boozy weekends in central London have also caused concern.

Cllr Harrison said the 2015 Deregulation Act had “effectively unlocked the floodgates, enabling people to let out their flats for more than 90 days per year while flying under the radar”, adding: “It’s really difficult for the planning enforcement team to prove it. They do work very hard on it and they run regular blitzes to identify those properties that are going over the 90-day limit. We do get some successes.

“It is a mountain to climb though, because our estimates suggest that there are around 6,000 properties within the borough being used as short-term lets — 6,000 properties that should be people’s homes. We actually think that’s possibly a conservative estimate – so there’s a lot to do.”

Cllr Harrison said Camden was now among local authorities lobbying the government for changes.

“What we’re asking for is legislation that will force the companies to share individualised, unit-level data with local authorities, so we can see exactly what’s going on in all the properties currently being let out for short-term lets,” he told the meeting.

“After that, we need a mandatory national registration scheme for short-term lets so we can obtain greater powers over those that do exist. We also want a new planning use class for short-term lets, with no associated permitted development rights. Existing flats within those 6,000 properties should not be allowed to roll forward to become short-term lets. We are working hard to persuade the government.”