08:03 AM EDT, 09/03/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Airbnb ( ABNB ) said Tuesday that New York City's local regulations outlawing many short-term rentals have failed to combat a housing shortage and are instead pushing hotel prices and rents higher, urging officials to scale back the policy.

"New York City's short-term rental regulations have backfired - disproportionately impacting outer borough communities, driving up travel costs, and doing nothing to solve the housing crisis," Airbnb ( ABNB ) said in a blog post, adding that tourists are left with little accommodation options.

Rents in the city went up 3.4% in the first 11 months of banning the online rental marketplace while vacancy rates remain unchanged, the company said.

Officials should re-evaluate the regulation and at least allow homeowners to house guests again in order to "increase the supply of accommodations for consumers, support resident hosts, and revitalize local businesses that depend on tourism dollars," said Theo Yedinsky, Airbnb's ( ABNB ) vice president for public policy.

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