The New ‘Cottage’ Industry: Housing, Lodging and the Sharing Economy

March 18, 2016

BCDCOG, Barrett Lawrimore Conference Room 1362 McMillan Avenue, Suite 100, North Charleston, SC

The new Sharing Economy has enabled the availability of private short-term rental properties like never before. Web-based clearinghouses for short-term rentals, such as VRBO and AirBnB, have changed the economic and regulatory landscape of short-term rental markets. These changes are felt in municipalities of all sizes. While some communities experience strains on the availability of long-term rental housing, others value the short-terms rentals as a supplement to traditional lodging options. This session will explore the relationship of the short-term rental sector of the sharing economy to land use and tax regulation and social and economic factors in resort and destination communities.