Airbnb, Booking, etc. City of Bonn won’t penalize those who rent properties without a license for now
Bonn · Bonn property owners who offer their apartments via platforms such as Airbnb and Booking will not have to face penalties for the time being if they fail to present the license that has been required since October 1. Instead, the registration deadline has been extended.
At least around 360 apartments are regularly offered for short-term rental in Bonn via portals such as Airbnb, Booking or Fewo-direkt. This information comes from a response by the city administration to a GA inquiry. To limit the misappropriation of living space, apartment providers should actually have to show a license number in the online offers, assigned by the “Bauportal NRW” or the city. This regulation began on October 1.
As the press office of the city communicates, so far altogether 259 dwelling identification numbers were assigned. 77 applications, on the other hand, have been rejected due to incorrect information or lack of cooperation on the part of the applicants. 22 cases are still being processed.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Construction has extended the registration deadline for subletting until the end of the year. Apartment providers without a license number do not have to expect harsh sanctions in the near future. The employees in the Office for Social Affairs and Housing are so burdened with "advising, checking and issuing" the licenses in addition to their other duties that a "targeted investigation into possible violations is not possible". In coordination with the Ministry of Construction, "in the case of possible misconduct, only notices and warnings are currently being issued," according to the press office.
The licenses are intended to ensure that apartments are only sublet for a maximum of 90 days a year. For students with appropriate proof, a special regulation of 180 days applies. It is assumed that they do not use their apartment or room within the semester break. Commercially offered vacation homes also require such a license number. There is no upper rental limit for them if a license is held.
(Orig. text: Martin Wein / Translation: Carol Kloeppel)
