Short-term rentals, government towards the squeeze: mayors in favor, hold back the owners

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The massive return of tourists, the sold out in the cities of art recorded over Easter and the numbers that are expected to grow also for the long weekend of April 25th bring attention to the issue of short-term tourist rentals. For the Minister of Tourism Daniela Santanchè new rules are needed, because “the Far West must end”. An intervention that has been requested for some time by the mayors of the main cities are asking for action at a national level. Meanwhile, organizations in the sector (including Confedilizia) underline, however, that there is no need for “further regulation” but for “an arrangement of the existing one”.

Santanchè: regulation is needed

For Minister Santanchè “the few existing rules are not applied. We need real regulation and we are also waiting for what Europe will come up with. I have activated a table with all the trade associations, listening to the various requests, and we will go and define new rules ». First, however, «we need to understand how many short-term rentals there are and where they are. We have to do a mapping, because it doesn’t exist today. Otherwise we are talking about nothing. After we have a complete photograph, we will intervene.

The front of the mayors

For some time, the first citizens of some cities have been carrying out a proposal to regulate the platforms for short-term tourist rentals. «The idea is to authorize short-term rentals of over 90 days a year by issuing licenses that will last 5 years. This within a planning of the city where the areas where these authorizations can be issued are identified”, explained the mayor of Bologna Matthew Lepore.

«Tourism must not be considered a problem but must be governed. We are talking about a global phenomenon and the idea that a single mayor can solve a global problem that affects entire nations is absurd. This is why we are asking for action at a national level, I hope to be able to talk about it soon with the Minister of Tourism Santanchè», said the mayor of Florence Dario Nardella, one of the most committed to finding a solution to the phenomenon.

Building organizations: no to further rules

Meanwhile Confedilizia and 12 other representative organizations of the sector have presented a document to the Minister of Tourism with some proposals starting from a premise: we need an “arrangement of the current reference legislation” and not new rules. Indeed, the organizations are asking for the repeal of two regulations: the first is the one that allows the municipality of Venice to limit short-term rentals in the historic centre. The second is the one that “compulsorily transforms the owner who intends to rent more than four apartments for short periods into an entrepreneur”. Among the proposals is that of reducing to a single fulfillment «borne by the owner (or the professional manager of his property), the electronic communication to the Police Headquarters regarding the data and information required by law with the assignment of an identification code or registration number »; «uniform national legislation with the various regional and municipal regulations» and, for greater transparency in the sector and to guarantee tenants, the activation of the “National identification code” (Cin), introduced in 2019 but not yet activated.