The effectiveness of a law set up to mitigate short-stay accommodation is showing positive trends and room for improvement, recent data reveals.
Noosa Council introduced Queensland’s first and only short-stay letting local law in February 2022 to manage negative impacts of private homes used for holiday letting in the region.
The Short Stay Letting Local Law December quarter snapshot shows the council refused 97 short-stay letting applications.
Meanwhile, 210 approvals were surrendered or not renewed, and 46 renewals expired.
Calls to a hotline set up to field complaints have also recorded a 45 per cent drop, from 592 in 2023 down to 266 in 2024.
Noosa mayor Frank Wilkie said fewer potential short-stay properties operating in Noosa meant fewer potential impacts on residential neighbourhoods.
“The data shows 353 properties not operating as potential short-stay letting, as identified by the local law registration and approval process,” Cr Wilkie said.
Related story: Short-stay law leads to fewer noise complaints, says council
“This means a reduction in potential impacts on residential amenity – a result reflected in the 45 per cent drop in calls to the complaints hotline.
“There are still disturbances and complaints that the hotline is not working as intended, and the short-stay team is investigating why this may be happening as part of the local law review.
“This is why the local law review began earlier last year as promised, and the local law will continue to be proactively implemented.”
The Short Stay Letting Local Law Review began in March 2024 to assess its effectiveness and identify weak spots and potential improvements.
“While there have been improvements, there are still a few cases where complaints are not managed within the 30-minute timeframe and neighbours are having their evenings disrupted, which is not acceptable,” Cr Wilkie said.
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Noosa Council is seeking to limit the spread of new short-term accommodation through residential neighbourhoods through its 2020 Noosa Plan, and the planning scheme amendments passed in December.
“It’s unclear the numbers of potential short-stay properties that have been prevented by the planning scheme and recent scheme amendments, but it would be significant,” Cr Wilkie said.
A report on the findings of the Short Stay Letting Local Law Review is scheduled to be presented to council early in 2025.
