Progressive cause group launches campaign to restrict short-term rentals

For the Many, an activist group for progressive political candidates and causes, has launched a campaign to ban non-owner-occupied vacation rentals listed on sites such as Airbnb.

Billed as the “Homes are Not Hotels” campaign, the group plans to target municipalities throughout the Hudson Valley, including Beacon, Kingston, New Paltz, Newburgh, and Poughkeepsie…

“Vacation rentals (like Airbnbs) play a significant role in limiting our housing options and driving up prices,” For the Many Executive Director Johnathan Bix said in a statement. “Absentee investors are buying up huge swaths of our housing stock and turning them into vacation rentals for tourists instead of renting or selling to long-term Hudson Valley residents. Taking on greedy investors and giant tech companies like Airbnb won’t be easy – but this fight is necessary to help ensure that long-time Hudson Valley residents can stay in the communities they call home,” he said.