DOWNTOWN — An alderman whose ward includes Downtown is calling for a crackdown on unlicensed room rentals like Airbnb.
According to Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd), there are more than 3,000 Chicago rooms advertised through the independent rental agency Airbnb, but only 200 of the people renting those rooms are licensed.
"There is a lack of compliance," Commissioner Maria Guerra Lapacek, head of the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, agreed during a Friday budget hearing. She acknowledged the "illegal vacation rentals" and blamed the lack of enforcement on "lack of manpower."
Reilly, though, was unsympathetic.
"You don't need an inspector to google 'Airbnb,'" he said.
Only a year ago, the city proposed and enacted a 4.5 percent tax on such rentals. Budget Director Alexandra Holt estimated at the time that it would produce $1 million a year.
Reilly suggested the rentals are even more widespread and that a crackdown could produce $1.5 to $2 million. "There is money literally sitting on the table," he said.
Lincoln Park Ald. Michele Smith (43rd) agreed.
"Bringing Airbnb into compliance is really within our grasp," she said.
Lapacek said the department would look into it.
A recent study of the airbnb rental market in the Chicago area, mostly consisting of city neighborhoods, put the annual number of hosts renting out rooms at 4,550 and guests at 165,800. The total annual revenue was $33.9 million, Crain's reported.
The top neighborhoods for airbnb rentals were Lakeview, West Town and the Loop, all with over 10,000 guests each, the study found. The Loop and Lakeview had more than 250 hosts each.
For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here:
