Planning for short term rental within New Zealand: a case study of New Zealand District Councils regarding regulation of the short term rental market : A dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Planning at Lincoln University

Abstract

New Zealand's tourism accommodation market is changing with a rapid increase in the number of short term rentals globally and in New Zealand over the last couple of years with the recent rise in web-based booking services such as ‘AirBnB’, ‘Bookabach’ and similar services. This dissertation investigates if local authorities within New Zealand view the increase in the short term rental market as an issue and, if so, what is being done to regulate the short term rental industry within New Zealand. Through the employment of qualitative research methods this case study was undertaken to assess three New Zealand Council’s perceived view of short term rental accommodation, issues and effects, and current and proposed regulation of short term rental accommodation. The three councils that this dissertation assessed were the Mackenzie District Council, the Queenstown Lakes District Council and Christchurch City Council. It was found that all three councils perceive short term rental accommodation to be an issue within their communities, with current regulation considered inadequate and further regulation required. The perceived issues and effects of short term rental accommodation include, loss of residential amenity and character, fairness, and housing availability. This study provided an assessment of the current and proposed planning provisions and regulation available for short term rental accommodation with the research finding that district plans are able to regulate and monitor the short term rental accommodation industry. However, to successfully regulate the impacts and issues, further regulation is required through other planning provisions.