It’s Much Harder to Find an Airbnb in NYC as New Rules Take Hold

City has so far only processed 25% of 3,250 applications
New rules require hosts to obtain a license from the city

Apartment buildings in the West Village neighborhood of New York. The city is implementing a new registration process to help control illegal short-term rental listings.Photographer: Alex Kent/Bloomberg

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By Natalie Lung

September 1, 2023 at 7:40 PM UTC

Updated on

September 6, 2023 at 2:34 PM UTC

As of Tuesday, it’s gotten much harder to find an Airbnb rental in New York City.

That’s because of new rules that took effect requiring hosts to obtain a license from the city verifying compliance with strict occupancy regulations and building codes. According to some property owners across the city, the Office of Special Enforcement was struggling to keep up with a backlog of these license applications ahead of the enforcement deadline.