Home-hosted Accommodation At Risk From Council Moves, B&B Association Says

Hosted bed and breakfast operators are concerned that efforts to increase regulation of short-term rental accommodation could harm their businesses.

The Bed & Breakfast Association New Zealand represents and promotes home-hosted bed and breakfasts throughout the country – including homestays, farmstays, boutique, heritage and luxury accommodation. Association members should not be confused with Airbnb operators, Association President Donna Brooke says.

“B&B owners host visitors in their homes, often sharing their personal spaces with their guests as they host them around the breakfast table. We offer a genuine, Kiwi hospitality experience that is often the only opportunity for international guests to chat to a local,” Ms Brooke says.

The hosted B&B sector attracts the high value visitors that Tourism Minister Stuart Nash has said he wants for Aotearoa New Zealand, and is just starting to recover after a tough few years when they were unable to host international visitors, she says.

Councils around the country are looking to regulate short-term rental accommodation (STRA), amid concerns they are contributing to rental housing shortages. They also want to ensure STRA properties are meeting quality and safety standards, and potentially paying commercial rates.

“The confusion over the booking platform Airbnb is frustrating for professionally run B&Bs. Airbnb does not represent our hosted accommodation sector. Airbnb is a booking platform, like many other examples of booking platforms out there,” Ms Brooke says.

“Hosted B&Bs are not contributing to the rental accommodation shortage. The B&B Association works with its members to get every single property Quality Assessed and has a rigorous assessment programme of its own. All current health and safety protocols are followed by our members, who must comply with council regulations covering the number of guests they can accommodate, and food safety rules.”

The B&B sector prides itself on the quality of service it offers, and this is reflected in the glowing reviews many of our B&Bs receive, she says.

“Home-hosted accommodation is an important part of our tourism industry. In their efforts to exert more control over non-hosted accommodation providers, we are calling on councils to ensure they don’t inadvertently harm the many high-quality B&Bs that are attracting valued visitors to their communities.”

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