The City of Florence is taking initial steps to introduce a regulation that would prohibit the short-term rental of residential real estate for tourism purposes.
The bylaw would be effective throughout the UNESCO World Heritage site of Florence and would not be retroactive. Intended to encourage the return of local residents to the city centre, a council ruling is still required to make a change to the existing municipal operational plan.
The council’s plan is to write off second home city taxes for three years for real estate that is currently being used as short-term holiday rentals if owners switch to long-term rentals.
“We realize that this would be a bold regulation legally speaking, but we know that we can defend it in legal terms,” remarked Dario Nardella, Mayor of Florence. “If we don’t at least attempt to do something politically daring, nothing will change.”
The Italian government is working on a law to control short-term rentals nationwide, but progress is hampered. The way forward remains complicated.
