Berlin to start tracking Airbnb listings

Germany: Commencing March 2023, Airbnb has announced that hosts located in Berlin will require a property registration number for long-term lets.

Since 2018, Berlin has required Airbnb hosts to display a registration number on listings advertised on the platform. The same rule also applies for hosts who let more than half of their property.

Around the same time, London, Dublin and Paris had all introduced annual rental caps whereas Barcelona began to collect data from Airbnb directly and enforce its own tax and zoning enforcement laws. 

Over the years, Berlin authorities have called for a more strict enforcement of these advertising rules, including that Airbnb shares user data so that taxes can be collected fairly.

Now, Airbnb has announced that from March next year, residential listings which are being let for long-term stays (three months minimum) must display a valid registration number on the online listing. Hosts can apply for a rental permit, which includes the registration number, with their district office. Further details can be found here.

In 2021, a study by the German Institute for Economic Research found that the rental costs of an apartment in Berlin increased by 13 per cent if it was located in the immediate vicinity of an Airbnb long-term let. The growing supply of Airbnb long-term lets is reducing the number of available rental housing, thereby pushing up rates.

The study also found that around 10,000 apartments were being rented on monthly basis in Berlin, which amounts to around 0.5 per cent of all accommodation in the city.