Short-stay Street: in some parts of Sydney, Airbnb guests outnumber residents

"At 10am on High Street in Millers Point, it's checkout time. Departing guests have left laundry bags on their verandas for cleaners, who have laid out fresh towels on beds in neighbouring rooms. Other guests are heading out sightseeing in I love Sydney T-shirts. Although it boasts enviable harbour views, this is not a tourist resort. It's a street of Federation-era houses formerly some of the oldest public housing in Australia overtaken by short-term rentals, many of them managed through Airbnb. Key safes at the entrance to High Street homes."

"Halfway down, leaves from the plane trees that line the street have piled up outside KU Lance kindergarten, which opened as a supervised playground in 1912. It closed at the end of last year because there aren't enough local children to fill enrolments. Now we're a city without grandchildren, says Cormac Champion, a Millers Point resident whose youngest child attended the centre before the class size dwindled. Sign up for the Breaking News Australia email It's a similar story on neighbouring Kent Street, where Champion lives."

"Every second Victorian terrace has a key-safe on the front door, the telltale sign of a short-term rental. The area, nestled beside the Harbour Bridge and home to Sydney's oldest pubs, is understandably popular with visitors. But while the five-star Langham hotel sits quietly on the corner, the suburb around it has transformed into a giant hotel. Last week the City of Sydney passed a motion to investigate the feasibility of banning short-term rentals where the host doesn't live at the property."

"The motion included the possibility of a ban linked to the rental vacancy rate or a ban in the worst-affected suburbs, of which Millers Point is the canary in the coalmine, according to the Greens councillor Matthew Thompson. Thompson, who brought the motion, says a ban could return as many as 5,000 properties to the long-term rental market. Last year the council investigate"

Federation-era houses on High Street in Millers Point are being used as short-term rentals, with key safes at entrances and fresh towels prepared for departing guests. The area’s harbour views attract visitors, but it is not a tourist resort. Nearby KU Lance kindergarten closed because there were not enough local children to maintain enrolments, reflecting a broader decline in families. Neighbouring Kent Street shows similar patterns, with many Victorian terraces displaying key safes that signal short-term letting. The City of Sydney passed a motion to investigate banning short-term rentals where the host does not live on the property, potentially using vacancy rates or targeting worst-affected suburbs. A ban is expected to return thousands of properties to the long-term rental market.

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