A onetime resident of an apartment in the Mile-End says that Montrealers and the municipal government need to take action against Airbnb units that are mostly operating outside the law.
Tim Forster says he was forced out of his apartment last year because the owners wanted to put all of the building's units on Airbnb. He told CTV that today, the apartment he once lived in now goes for around $75 a night, a fifth of what he used to pay for an entire month.
In response, he created a Facebook event urging Montrealers to "take ten minutes to report an illegal Airbnb today!"
In the city's inner boroughs, it is generally illegal to put residential apartments on the popular homesharing app — outside of specified tourist areas. Despite this, it is estimated that as many as 6,000 Airbnb units are listed on the app in Ville-Marie and the Plateau-Mont-Royal alone.
Forster wants the city to crack down on Airbnb units where they are illegal. The city began to take action on the subject just last week, when it was reported that municipal crews are cutting the lockboxes containing keys to units.
“When you have whole buildings, I think that’s where [the government] really needs to crack down,” he said.
Montrealers can call 3-1-1 to report an Airbnb to the city.