The City of Vancouver has passed its first legislation regulating short-term rentals at city council.

Councillors voted 7-4 Tuesday on a policy allowing homeowners and renters to list primary-only residences on sites like Airbnb for a licensing fee of $49 a year and a one-time application fee of $54.

The new regulations will come into effect on April 1, 2018 and hosts will have to display their licence number in online listings.

Under the policy, renting out secondary suites would not be allowed and a maximum of two adults would be allowed in each room.

Homeowners caught listing units on short-term rental websites without a licence will face a fine of up to $1,000 for each infraction.

With the new rules homeowners will still be allowed to list an individual room inside their principal residence. And tenants who are renting a basement apartment or laneway house will be allowed to list it on Airbnb, as long as it’s their principal residence and they have permission from the owner.

Last modified: November 15, 2017

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