It’s probably the ugliest listing around. Basically, a garage glued to a box. On a narrow lot. No trees. But for $1.6 million it could be your own NOTL income property.
Not far away, a modest two-storey brick building was listed on Queen. Just shy of $3.5 million with a couple of small retail spaces below and two apartments above. Yup, short-term rentals (STRs). What’s interesting is the property tax bill: $45,000.
Compare that with a three-storey heritage commercial building in Niagara Falls. More than 21,000 feet of leasable space. Solid location. Elevator. Nine commercial units. Leased. Nice ROI. Taxes? Just $35,000.
Yes, we’re so special. Not always in a good way.
The financialization of NOTL real estate continues. And, sadly, the crew in charge of the place doesn’t seem to have a handle on it, even as they grow more aware we have a problem. Unlike most places, this paradise has blessed the conversion of houses into mini-hotels. If you want to buy the little bung next door and fill it with nice people from Baltimore and Pittsburgh, go ahead. No need to live there.
This has resulted in about 400 registered STRs. As Coun. Maria Mavridis says, that’s five per cent of NOTL’s housing stock.
But wait. As of this past weekend, there were 1,000 rentals listed for the town on Airbnb alone. Does this mean a whopping 10 per cent of residential real estate has actually been commercialized? No other place in Canada would come close to that. Are 600 rentals illegal? Are we fostering the same vibrant community that lives in a Super8 or Holiday Inn Express?
Well, Mavridis is the sparkplug lately igniting potential change.
Council has decided not to accept any more applications for STRs until a staff analysis is ready. For some ungodly reason, that’ll take six more months. Then, maybe, a new bylaw. And, perchance, it will require rentals to be in primary residences where people actually, you know, dwell. (The new-application pause applies only to unhosted rental locations. Others can proliferate.)
Not everyone sees the issue with turning NOTL into a big motel.
Tim Balasiuk sits on council. “I don’t think (short-term rentals) in Niagara-on-the-Lake are going to save the Canadian housing crisis,” he says sarcastically. And it won’t. Maybe just here, however. When crap houses cost $1.6 million and rentals with year-long leases are virtually non-existent, something’s not working.
As this pathetic column reported a month ago: “If you want to have a B&B, this town is your pal. Other places ban the practice of renting out a room or a suite short-term unless you live in the place. Not here. We allow whole houses and cottages, villas and inns to thrive as tourist rentals.”
Do we need even more?
A big honking hotel’s being built in the midst of the Old Town — where we already have the Prince of Wales, Q124, Shaw Club, Queen’s Landing, Harbour House, The Charles, Angel Inn, Best Western and more. Lots more.
Meanwhile on MLS there are only five local rentals listed. All houses, from $3,000 to $10,000 a month. The number of for-lease apartments available: zero. But if you’d like to pay $200 to $1,500 per night, you have a thousand choices.
Yes, I know. A bunch of wealthy people here have bought up homes and financialized them. Why not? Good cash flow. A steady stream of clients. Easy online bookings. Just come up with a cute name. Include the word “historic.” Charge the tourists bigly and fly under the radar — both with the town (there’s an accommodation tax) plus, maybe, the CRA.
The clerks, gardeners, trades and baristas? Hey, we left you Welland.
