Short-term rentals (STRs) threaten housing for our neighbors and our communities. That’s why Los Angeles created the Home-Sharing Ordinance (HSO): to allow residents to rent out their own homes for extra cash, while preventing landlords and corporate investors from converting long-term housing into de facto hotels.

LA’s new proposed budget includes a huge giveaway for Airbnb: a roll-back of short-term rental laws. That puts our housing and communities at risk from corporate speculators, especially with the Olympics coming in 2028. We're writing to the Mayor and City Council, and showing up at budget hearings, to say: no giveaways to Airbnb, protect our long-term housing and communities!

Research shows that the STRs we already have in LA have raised rent for the rest of us by as much as $810/year, and that’s partly because the city doesn’t meaningfully enforce our STR laws. Over 60% of all STRs in LA are illegal, and in December of 2024, there were over 4500 non-compliant listings in LA—but the City only issued 103 citations in the entire year.

Airbnb’s goal is to undermine the HSO and to take even more units off the market, which will mean less housing, higher rent, and more people living on the streets. Their "Vacation Rental Ordinance" (VRO) would create 31,000 new permits for vacation rentals—more than six times the current number. City Staff has rejected the VRO, saying it would negatively affect housing and not raise the promised revenue. Despite these warnings, the new budget moves Airbnb’s proposal forward; they’ll benefit, while LA loses more housing,  

There is a better path. Enforcing the Home-Sharing Ordinance we have now on just 5% of illegal short-term rentals would bring in more than $42 million a year. That’s real revenue without sacrificing long term housing.

The Mayor and the Council Budget & Finance Committee need to hear from YOU: use the tools on this page to tell the Mayor and City Council that you want STRONGER enforcement on STRs, and NO giveaways for Airbnb!

Sign up to join us at City Council on 4/24 or 4/27, and write to your Councilmember, all by using the tools on this page.

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Better Neighbors LA is a coalition of Southern California hosts, tenants, housing activists, hotel workers, and community members. We believe the best way to support true home-sharing for hosts and guests is also the best way to protect jobs and the community: by curbing illegal commercial activity in the short-term rental industry.