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A cap on short-term holiday rentals in regional New South Wales tourist hot spots has had no impact on the housing crisis, a University of Queensland study has found. The research is published in .

Researchers from UQ's School of the Environment and School of Economics analyzed the NSW Government-imposed 180-day cap on short-stay providers in Byron Bay, Ballina, the Clarence Valley and Muswellbrook from late 2021, and whether it resulted in fewer holiday listings and a subsequent drop in the price of long-term rentals.

Dr. Frank Zou said hosts on platforms like Airbnb and Stayz were limited to renting their properties for 180 days a year, in response to post-COVID cost of living increases.

"Our study looked at whether there was any kind of impact on how much it costs per week to rent a property in those areas long-term, as a result of those restrictions on the short-term market," Dr. Zou said.

The study used data sets tracking the number of short-term rental listings from providers like Airbnb and Stayz as well as overall pricing of long-term rental properties in each of the regional areas.

Data were analyzed between 2019–2023, taking in COVID-19 lockdowns, the announcement and implementation of regulations, and the post-pandemic reopening.

Professor Alicia Rambaldi said the study applied advanced modeling techniques and found there was only a temporary reduction in short-term rentals.

"We found no significant rent level decrease," she said.

Dr. Zou said the analysis identified a temporary 22% drop in listings in the Byron shire soon after the 180-day cap implementation, but the numbers soon recovered.

"The 180-day caps in these specific NSW communities do not appear to have had the intended effect of promoting long-term rental affordability," he said.

"Nor has there been a significant or sustained reduction in short-term rental activities.

"Enforcement of these caps is challenging, with some property owners listing on multiple platforms in an attempt to bypass regulations.

"Even with restrictions, not everyone will put their short-term rental property back onto the long-term rental market—it's just not realistic."

Associate Professor Thomas Sigler said the Byron shire had since implemented an even more restrictive cap of 60 days, with exemptions for properties in inner and beachside Byron Bay.

"We are interested in examining this further," he said.

"It is possible there will be some kind of shift in the number of hosts who list on platforms like Airbnb as a result."

The study involved researchers from UQ's School of the Environment (Zou, Sigler, Elin Charles-Ewards, Jonathan Corcoran) and the School of Economics (Rambaldi).