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Stay Gazette
Airbnb, Vrbo and the business of short-term rentals, reported daily
The record

April 2023

2 stories · Crackdown, World

April 2023 was a month of governments reaching for registers. In England, ministers proposed a separate planning class for short-term lets and consulted on a national registration scheme. In Florida, the Senate passed a bill to cap local registration fees and put platforms under state rules, over beach-town mayors' objections; the House had not voted when the month ended. Manchester began charging a visitor levy, Airbnb paused new Experiences and named more landlord partners for its apartments programme, and AirDNA's figures showed US listings growing faster than nights stayed.

A look back, written in October 2026 from sources published in April 2023. Stay Gazette opened in July 2026.

The River Esk at Whitby with rows of small boats moored along both banks, red-roofed houses climbing the far hillside and the ruins of Whitby Abbey on the skyline under broken cloud.World · 12 April 2023England Proposes Planning Permission and a Register for Short-Term LetsMinisters proposed a planning class of its own for short-term lets, with a local power to demand planning permission for new ones, and asked how a national register should work. Existing lets would be reclassified without an application. The short-term rental trade association backed the register and opposed the planning rule.By Tomás Ferreira · Filed 11 October 2026 · 7 min read The old Florida capitol in Tallahassee, a white columned building with a dome and red-and-white striped window awnings, with the tall newer capitol tower rising behind it under a blue sky, framed by oak branches hung with Spanish moss.Crackdown · 27 April 2023Florida Senate Passes a Vacation Rental Bill That Caps Local Registration FeesThe Senate voted 28 to 10 for a statewide frame: cities could charge no more than $150 to process a vacation rental registration and suspend one after repeat violations, and platforms would have to show and check state license numbers. Beach-town mayors said it took their tools away. The House had not voted when April ended.By Marcus Dane · Filed 11 October 2026 · 7 min read

Pictures on this page. 1. Photo: Whitby and the River Esk (2011.10.19) by Geir Hval (www.Macwhale.eu), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (resized). 2. Photo: Florida State House by F McGady, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (resized).

Also that month

What else was reported in April 2023

  • 3 April 2023Manchester became the first UK city to introduce a tourist tax, a City Visitor Charge of £1 per night that 73 hotels and short-stay serviced apartments signed up to and that was expected to raise £3 million a year. Short Term Rentalz
  • 5 April 2023Eurostat figures showed guests spent around 547 million nights in EU short-term rentals booked through Airbnb, Booking, Expedia Group or TripAdvisor in 2022, more than the 512 million of 2019. Short Term Rentalz
  • 19 April 2023Airbnb paused submissions of all new Experiences, saying it was focusing on perfecting its core service; existing Experiences were not affected. Short Term Rentalz
  • 20 April 2023AirDNA's monthly US review put available listings at around 1.35 million, up 20.3 per cent on a year earlier in March, with 15.8 per cent more nights stayed and occupancy two per cent below the year before. Short Term Rentalz
  • 20 April 2023Short Term Rentalz reported that Scotland's First Minister, Humza Yousaf, would confirm plans to let councils charge double the full rate of council tax on second homes from April 2024, subject to a 12-week consultation. Short Term Rentalz
  • 21 April 2023Airbnb said it was adding Starwood Capital Group, GoldOller Real Estate Investments, Milhaus and Space Craft as landlord partners for its Airbnb-friendly apartments programme, which then covered 250 buildings and renters in 38 US cities. Short Term Rentalz