Airbnb vs. NYC.

• Author: Doherty, Brian
• Position: Tax-free accommodations - Brief article

The city of New York prohibits owners from subletting their apartments for less than 30 days. So it's not surprising that an October report from the New York Attorney General's office found 72 percent of Airbnb units in the city that never sleeps violating at least one local law.

Airbnb, a website that allows tourists to book accommodations in private homes, is a remarkably efficient way of allowing under-and unused properties to help meet a demonstrated need for short-term lodging, especially in dense urban areas and popular vacation destinations. In fact, the A.G. found a tenfold increase in Airbnb bookings between 2010 and June 2014, representing $282 million in revenue for the service and the individual hosts.

The report calls the growth in Airbnb...