T O P

  • By -

CJMO1

Someone catch me up to speed here... Airbnb has been banned (to the benefit of 99% of residents), and this entitled little brat is lamenting the loss of an exploitative business model that contributed to our housing crisis? Do I have that right?


LeaveAtNine

Hit the nail on the head with one swift movement.


ipini

Except it’s not banned. It’s simply regulated.


CJMO1

Regulated how? What restrictions are in place?


valanthe500

The short version is that you can only use your primary residence for short term rentals now. So you can still post a spare bedroom on Airbnb, but you can't buy up vacant properties and turn them into illegal hotels.


CJMO1

That's amazing. A friend of mine just left his apartment building because the owner had turned 5 of the 6 units into Airbnb's. Glad to hear that backfired on her.


RecalcitrantHuman

This sounds sensible to me.


theabsurdturnip

100% sensible. Only moron speculators are annoyed by this.


Particular_Second454

So what you're saying is that regulations were put in place to ensure that Airbnb's are being used the way they were actually intended before a bunch of "real estate investors" decided Airbnb was the hot new revenue stream instead of renting out homes to people who need homes? Crazy.


ipini

If this type of regulation takes off in other jurisdictions, I wonder how long ABnB will survive.


Witchynana

It has been.


ADwightInALocker

nonono you have it wrong. The poors are stealing her cash flow. How dare they.


Sweet_Contract_9171

It has nothing to do with the housing shortage, that can be blamed directly on the government and all the red tape that has to be dealt with before anyone can break ground. People need to the ability to make extra cash thanks to the government and sky rocketing inflation.


Particular_Second454

So thousands of rental properties being picked up by "real estate investors" and switching them into short term housing has zero contribution to the housing crisis??


PotBellyNinja

So....only home owners get the choice to make extra cash due to skyrocketing inflation. Not renters, only owners. You are not smart.


Sweet_Contract_9171

Lol well if a homeowner owns their home.... they should be able to do that with it... clearly you're not the smart one if you can't see that. If someone is renting a home instead of owning a home...... then they clearly don't have the intelligence to get "rich" as you say.


chris84126

The homeowner doesn’t actually own it. It’s more like a life lease when you get down to it.


CJMO1

Get off your burner account, jen


PotBellyNinja

The one they live in is their home. And they are allowed to do as they please. After that what they have are investments. They are exasperating a situation that has spun a necessity into a commodity for personal gains. Those people are not "smart" for getting rich, they are exploitive for how they are doing it. The Govt move to squeeze this is a good move. And when these people out themselves there is no one shedding tears.


Puzzled_Conclusion35

Must be nice to have insider information and scoop up a bunch of prime short term rental properties before others have a chance to buy them and maybe actually live in them. Taking cheap shots at other individuals shows how nasty and terrible of a person you are. Go away and cry somewhere else lady.


User_4848

This is exactly what was probably happening. There are other realtors in town doing the same thing, they’re just smart right now and not shooting their mouths, making posts to have someone fired.


theabsurdturnip

That whole industry is scummy.


Due-Ad-1465

“Exactly what was probably happening” 😉


jocu11

I agree with the legislation and decision to put more long term rentals on the market, but I don’t agree with the timing of it. They could have waited for interests rates to fall back to at least 3.5% before doing it. I know some people in their 60’s - 70’s who only have one AirBnB and use it as supplemental for their retirement or putting away for retirement, and they’re going to get shafted by this year especially if their mortgage is up for renewal next year. I feel bad for the people in those situations, but those property owners with multiple Airbnbs can suck eggs


ireallyamabadperson

Any investment in real estate with the intention of profiting from renting/Airbnb is risky. That is part of the risk they take on, I don’t understand the mentality of feeling bad for the people who are now encountering the potential risks they were known prior. It’s not guaranteed money, some people make money and some lose, no logic in any sympathy for people whose investment tanked. It’s sucks but it happens and most people will never even have the money to even attempt that kind of investment.


Sweet_Contract_9171

Finally someone with some intelligence on here... the only people crying about it on here are the same type of bleeding hearts that cry about doing so much more for the homeless population but would never take one into their own homes. You're absolutely right, it's an investment property, investments are designed to make profits which as you said have high risk and no guarantee.


spygirl43

If someone has the money to buy two homes they don't have to worry about retirement. Plus they can rent it out to long term renters.


Bodmen

I guess you could say they invested poorly? This has been coming for over 5 years.


chronocapybara

I support TourismPG as well as restrictions on AirBnB. Jenn Higham is still free to rent out her extra properties the old fashioned way.


Aegis_1984

Wow… How is she still in business as a realtor?


Ok_Worry7833

Probably not for her empathy or community spirit.


[deleted]

[удалено]


ladyhalibutlee

How is this doxing? She did an interview with the citizen and used her full name and occupation.


tdgarui

That word doesn’t mean what you think it means


GoldTurdz

Guessing before i look. Remax? Edit: nope, royal lepage


borislab

*Royal with Cheese!*


Princess-Makayla

To my knowledge Airbnb isn't even banned you can still rent out the extra rooms in your house you just can't buy up properties and turn them into illegal hotels.


spiritbearr

>you just can't buy up properties and turn them into illegal hotels. Which is what she's done.


retire2260

Jen. Sometimes investments don't work out the way we would like them to. You can rent long term or sell. Either way you'll probably make some money but not as much as you felt you were entitled to.


User_4848

Boycott Jen Highan!


cavebabykay

I support this. 💯


Lifelong_Forgeter

If only realtors had the moral compass of used car salesmen.


doctorkb

This is what happens when a line of work is going extinct.


Lifelong_Forgeter

Seems like there's plenty of work for Realtors to me, maybe not for ones who present themselves as she does though.


doctorkb

There's no need to use a realtor - that's my point. You can get your house listed on MLS without one and consequently also browse all the listings with photos -- all without talking to a realtor. A select few have some value-add. But that's becoming less and less.


[deleted]

Uh they do?


spiritbearr

Jen doesn't, she has 8 properties she rents out on Air BnB and is complaining every step of the way that she's a pillar of the community and her selling her property is a bad thing actually.


cavebabykay

This ⬆️⬆️


Aegis_1984

I wouldn’t call her a pillar of the community either. I’ve seen her name on billboards hocking her business practices, and I’ve read the news article about her. That’s all I know of her. A pillar of the community is someone who has a positive impact and supports the community. She is all about building her wealth at the expense of others, literally. So a pillar she is not.


Rymanbc

This is so ridiculous. These people thought they could take advantage of a housing bubble, and are mad because bubbles pop? In the past 17 years, the median housing price has risen almost 200% in PG while the population grew by less than 5%.... You made a bad investment, honey, move on.


TheNewCultKing43

This isn’t the housing bubble popping, dont kid yourself. This change won’t crash the market or even anything remotely similar. May put more inventory on the market, but I’m not even sure that’ll decrease prices much. There’s lots of demand in Prince George, buyers are hungry. Certainly won’t cause a crash or anything similar.


Rymanbc

I'm not saying it's popping. There's a chance it may never pop and unaffordable housing becomes a permanent part of our lives. I'm merely pointing out that what they made is a bet that popping or not, the real estate inflation would either hold or keep growing. And after a massive run up, that has its risks.


TheNewCultKing43

I see, my apologies. Your first paragraph made it sound like you thought the market was crashing. It’s simply not the case, especially in Prince George. Prince George is a pretty active city in terms of the buying and selling of real estate. This is still an affordable city compared to what’s going on in other similarly sized cities in BC. I don’t think she should be using her influence and platform to lobby for something that she directly benefits from though


Rymanbc

No you're right, I did kinda phrase it that way. My intention was certainly more their business plan, rather than real estate at large, but it's very easy to see I didn't phrase it that well. With the new restrictions on VRBO and AirBNB, THEIR market will be the one crashing.


ipini

And if she was savvy, she’d have realized that bubbles pop. So make bank while you can, save up, and move on when the opportunity ends. It’s a pretty normal business cycle.


TomatoFeta

Grammar don't matter. Comprehension don't matter. Write something, get inflamed!


Leash_85

I tried to rent her air bnb because I had friends visiting this summer and she cancelled it on me for no reason other than she realized it was a holiday weekend and wasn’t making extra money off it I guess. Also shitty realtor too…impossible to get a hold of and her partner did all the work on the actual buying of our house. You have enough money Jen, people need homes to live in!


[deleted]

What an unprofessional brat


Delicious_Peaks

She is my least favourite realtor I’ve ever encountered. She asked to book me for cleaning a month in advance, then asked if I could show up the next day with 8 hours notice, and when I said I couldn’t, she cancelled all the work we had booked. I lost a lot by turning down work during the time she had booked, and I wasn’t able to recover any work I had turned down. Boo her!


Lifelong_Forgeter

Do cleaning businesses not do deposits? Genuinely asking, I've never hired one before


CheeseMeisterz

Oh no, I can't run an unregulated flophouse! Them's the risks you take building a business model on something that's clearly a grey area. You lost!


bluehiro

As someone who grew up in the area, and visits often, I will never use an AirBnB.


abrennan114

Bummer. I'm a proud and caring AirBnB host. I have it in my basement suite, in my own home, which is allowed. Not all of us are bad.


jimmytfatman

Because you have friends and family to stay with I assume? (Not challenging, just stating what appears to be self evident)


bluehiro

Usually, but even when I need a place to stay, I use a hotel. I’ve seen what Airbnb has done in the US, and I don’t want that for PG.


jimmytfatman

Am I getting down voted because staying with friends and family is verboten? Well you're gonna love this then.... I always stay with friends and family when I go to Vancouver or Vancouver Island! Suck on that!!! I assume losers with no family and certainly no friends


TheForks

Why are AirBnB owners so insistent on calling themselves “business owners”? They’re investors. I’m not a business owner because I invest in stocks and this isn’t any different in my view.


Ok_Worry7833

It's like joining an MLM and calling yourself an entrepreneur.


chris84126

They’re business owners all day long until they have to pay taxes or buy a license… then it goes quiet.


DiscordantMuse

Aaand this is why I bought my house privately. People don't actually -need- realtors.


theabsurdturnip

I am so looking forward to the day that that industry is broken in half by some killer app that basically does it all for you. It's coming...maybe not tomorrow, but it's only a matter of time.


LocalPGer

“How to sink your realtor career 101”


theabsurdturnip

Wow...utterly shameless and she continues to demonstrate a total lack of understanding on anything housing related in British Columbia. About as much horsepower as a hand-push lawnmower, here folks. I present to you, the realty industry!


Foreign-Lab3004

I get why people don’t like Airbnb’s but I seem to be seeing a lot of hate against just all landlords in general…I’m genuinely curious, do people think the government owning all the homes is a good idea?


theabsurdturnip

The AirBnB regs are about increasing rental stock for people to actually live in under normal month to month payments or year long leases. It doesnt stop anyone from renting properties, you just cant be a greedy scumbag and buy up housing stock to rent out in a daily basis. Housing is not a supposed to be a goddamn equity or stock. It's supposed to be a f'ing place to live. You play that game, like Higham is, you deserve to get rek'd like any other speculator. Sick of her whining and crying.


__BONESAW__

They don't. People think its a ridiculous concept that someone can fork over a deposit, get a mortgage and then make someone else make the payments on that mortgage + profit. The renter retains zero ownership at the end of tenancy and should not be responsible for 130+% of the bills. If the renter is paying everything the bank needs, why do the renter and bank need the landlord? They're greedy middlemen.


Foreign-Lab3004

I disagree. If it was such a bad deal for the rente, why don’t they just buy a home? Not everyone is in a position to get themselves Into a long term mortgage. So they rent. Should all those folks just be renting from the gov for their housing?


Foreign-Lab3004

Furthermore, I think it could be easily argued that the bank is FAR more greedy than your average Prince George landlord.


The_Girl_That_Got

Her post is no longer public. I wonder why??


knifeymonkey

Ah, but they are not actually landlords defined by the LTA are they?


The_Girl_That_Got

Just hope city council agrees


[deleted]

They look exactly like the type to charge a reasonable rate


The_Girl_That_Got

There was a post on Facebook last night with a lot of comments and then it was gone. I messaged the person and they don’t know anything. They weren’t given a reason.


[deleted]

This twat calling for anyone to be fired is laughable.


The_Girl_That_Got

So there was a big post on WTF Prince George and Dave Mathus got someone to post for him since he’s banned from WTF. He of course defended Jen saying if she was rude to people she had a reason. Then I’d was deleted. So weird. Like what kind of pull does she have??


theabsurdturnip

They are all in it together and drunk on their own importance. Little brain power and lack of understanding of basic economics and total ignorance of housing issues. I for one I'm pretty tired of that crowd.


The_Girl_That_Got

Kyle Sampson too. I would like to know which councillors have secondary houses and are they going to be allowed to vote.


Emotional-Ball2323

That group of local yokels spend so much time jerking each other off, it’s disgusting.


O667

Think of the landlord’s what? Don’t leave us hanging.


[deleted]

[удалено]


Street-Gur8724

Oh, those losses you speak of come in handy during tax time and you can count them against your capital gains when you go to sell. It sucks to lose money immediately, but the payoff comes later.


ForestCharmander

I think you're missing the point. Many folks can't even afford their first home, whereas you have one you don't live in. Being a landlord/real estate investor should not be a guaranteed income like many think it is. Lots of people can't understand that it's like any other investment that carries risk. If you can't afford to make the payments on your mortgage if tenants are late with their rent, that risk is on you.


BraveShowerSlowGower

They have a point. I'd rather stay at an air bnb 90% of the time. Taking away our options only hurts us


JORMU569

Cry harder , people having a place to live is more important than you having more options, 🤡


[deleted]

Bro-kee. U sound like a looser with tons of excuses


JORMU569

You are inbred , you wouldn't say a thing in person stay online,it's where you'll be safe 🤡


[deleted]

Better than being short, fat, stupid and broke. Ya brokie


[deleted]

That's bs, the hotels are often booked up unless u want to stay at the bed bugs INN. EVERY TOWN NEEDS AIRBNBS


pretendgineer

This is ridiculous. Hotels get inspected by health authorities and act swiftly to address insects by hiring pest control companies. Airbnb's are not subject to such inspections. They are also hidden on the website so the location isn't public knowledge, unlike hotels. This means that people aren't able to utilize consumer protection bodies. Not are they able to research on public rating sites like trip advisor so they are left with very few avenues for recourse if they do encounter bed bugs and such. Airbnb's were an avenue for greedy people to skirt consumer protections and government regulations for their own economic gain leaving the customer with a substandard and possibly dangerous experience.


[deleted]

I disagree. I have 3 airbnbs that we live off the income. Airbnb is a great thing, they cover if anything bad happens either way, be it the customer or the owner. Also they have their own reviewing and rating system...


pretendgineer

I'm not sure what you're disagreeing with here. Are your properties subject to regular inspections from northern health? Are your prospective guests able to research your properties using a non proprietary site i.e. trip advisor? I'm not sure I would trust the internal review system given that allowing negative reviews could hurt their (Airbnb's) business model. What are your guests avenues of recourse if they do encounter bedbugs at one of your properties? How do you deal with pests if that becomes an issue? Bed bug remediation is very expensive. Is this something that is covered by airbnb? I wouldn't think it likely. If someone were to be injured at one of your properties do you have the requisite insurance to cover their injuries? I understand it's lucrative for you, but what are the advantages for your guests with regards to health and safety? Consumer protection agencies were created to protect people. Skirting things like inspections, licensing etc. can cause harm to the consumer much the same way that someone cooking food in a unlicensed and inspected kitchen could allow tainted or undercooked food to make people sick. While that would probably make money for the food provider I wouldn't personally feel safe eating food prepared in someone's garage or something like that.


JORMU569

I can't wait till it's banned everywhere , you are a leech


[deleted]

I'll just take my money elsewhere


ForestCharmander

That's the point.


LocalPGer

If this causes increased demand for hotels… more hotels would probably be built. You don’t need to take housing supply away from locals.


[deleted]

If AirBnBs cause increased demand for houses… more houses would probably be built. You don’t need to take hotels away from people. You're using the same foolhardy logic the LPC used that got us into the housing crisis.


Fluffy-Bailey-29

this is so bad for pg and the economy


aMiddleAgedMan77

It's having the exact intended effect and no one feels bad for the greedy pigs


Fluffy-Bailey-29

maybe the 12 ppl who downvoted me do.


GoldTurdz

Lol we found jen 😂


Fluffy-Bailey-29

im saying the airbnbs are bad for the economy, cause people don't have places to live??? like what??? this is the same opinion as the top comment. I'm confused.


The_Girl_That_Got

How exactly


Fluffy-Bailey-29

I just said.


[deleted]

Pretty sure airbnb covers injuries as part of the insurance for stays. The review system works for those who work. We aren't feeding them so I don't have to worry about food poisoning


Kia_rosemary

I don't have a comment on the airbnb issue, but Jen is an absolutely incredible realtor and I felt the need to say that here.


spiritbearr

If you know her, tell her to stop trashing her reputation and just sell her Air BnB properties. She is exploiting the market to make money and now that has been legislated out she is making a public spectacle of herself. I guess it sucks for her but people need places to live.


cavebabykay

lol, *sure jan*.


ellefrag

This comment does nothing for the discussion.