Some cottage country municipalities in Ontario have mixed responses to the federal government’s rumoured plans to incentivize municipalities to introduce short-term rental regulations. One idea is to limit the number of short-term rentals in the hope that it would free up properties for long-term rentals, thus helping to alleviate the country’s housing crisis.
Since Tiny Township introduced STR regulations in August 2022, Mayor David Evans says the number of legally permitted STRs in the township has been reduced to 300. He says they had an estimated peak of 600 STRs during the pandemic, which led to tens of thousands of emails to the township from residents citing concerns about tenant safety, and loss of their tight-knit communities.
While he believes that Tiny’s regulations and licensing practices could serve as a positive framework for other municipalities, he’s unconvinced that limiting the number of STRs would improve Tiny’s long-term rental market because most of their STRs are seasonal and not designed for year-round use.
Mark Lemkay sits on the Muskoka Lakes Chamber of Commerce board, and is director of sales for Jayne’s Luxury Rentals. He echoes Evans’ argument that limiting STRs would not result in more long-term renting inventory in Muskoka Lakes. He says most of their STR properties are secondary seasonal properties owned by cottagers, so they would likely stay vacant if they weren’t rented out by local agencies.
Other municipalities, such as Seguin Township, have decided against regulations because they don’t believe limiting the number of STRs would free up properties for long-term rental housing. Seguin’s chief administrative officer, Jason Inwood, says the township instead introduced heftier fines for noise and nuisance infractions, based on common concerns they heard from residents.
Inwood would not comment on the federal government’s rumoured plans. He says council would be receptive to provincial or federal legislation, but that any solutions would have to reflect the specific needs of the community.
Lemkay says that because the housing markets in areas like Port Carling and Bracebridge are seasonal, they would lose tens of thousands of vacationers a year with STR property limits. He argues this would drive down profits for tourist-related businesses, and put many people on his 75-person rental team out of a job.
Norah Fountain, executive director of the Muskoka Lakes Chamber of Commerce, says there is a unique vacation rental market that would require different regulations than for STR properties.
“Well-managed vacation properties can’t be lumped in (with STRs),” Fountain stated in an email to Cottage Life. “Should their use be reduced by municipalities or short-sighted legislation of any type, it could do irreparable harm to our economy that is still highly seasonal dependent.”
Parry Sound Chamber of Commerce representative Chris McDonald says limiting the number of STRs, which make up around 10% of Parry Sound’s properties, would have little impact on the tourism economy given the high presence of resorts. He believes municipalities can enforce existing noise and environmental bylaws and require higher standards for STRs to address common complaints.
Responsible Hosts of Tiny representative and STR operator Glen Sloutsky calls the regulations Tiny implemented in 2022 “draconian”. He believes the township could use the federal government’s incentives to justify maintaining these bylaws.
Tiny now requires STR property owners to apply for a $1,500 license that permits 92 days of annual operation, with a maximum of 300 licenses available to the community at once. The township also provides a private complaint hotline so residents can report STR bylaw infractions as part of a demerit system that causes property owners to lose their licenses after 15 points.