City of Vancouver has issued a local branch of a Chinese company to run at least three Airbnb flophouses in the city in clear violation of Vancouver short term rental bylaws that only permit individuals to offer listings in their primary residence.
One of them is a brand new three-bedroom townhouse at 7827 Manitoba Street, which is advertised on both Airbnb1 and Booking.com2.
The Booking.com listing names Jotel Hospitality Service LTD as the host, and goes on to explain:
Jotel Hospitality Service LTD is a branch of LOCALS company of China, Locals is the largest hospitality management company in China. It was registered and opened in Vancouver on June 28, 2018, and specializes in short-term rental services in the Vancouver area. The company has managed a number of listings in the Vancouver area and can offer different listings to its guests.
The director of Jotel Hospitality Service LTD is listed as Jian Ning Liang with a registered office in Richmond, BC.
The listing for the same unit on Airbnb carries the City of Vancouver business licence 19-174472 which is issued to a certain Xiaoling Luo. The host, whose name is given as 其忠 (Qi Zhong), has 15 other units in Metro Vancouver, including three inside Vancouver city limits, all with City of Vancouver business licences.
The other two units in Vancouver appear to be at Marine Gateway, and bear the licence numbers 19-204015, issued to a certain Yifei Yao and 19-205943, issued to a certain Fei Hu.
其忠, 15 listings:
| Listing | City | License | Name on License |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mountain & Ocean View in Gorgeous Home | Burnaby | – | Unknown |
| Eclectic Boho-Chic Apartment with Garden Patio | Burnaby | – | Unknown |
| Contemporary Living Steps Away from Marine Gateway | Vancouver | 19-204015 | (Yifei Yao) |
| Exquisite Home Near Marine with Captivating View | Vancouver | 19-205943 | (Fei Hu) |
| Brand NEW Modern Townhouse at Marine | Vancouver | 19-174472 | (Xiaoling Luo) |
| Traveller’s Private Comfortable Bedroom | Richmond | – | Unknown |
| Grand Private Bedroom on Top Floor | Richmond | – | Unknown |
| Downtown Stylish Condo Near Hilton&Marriott Hotel | Richmond | – | Unknown |
| NEW Minimalist Private Bedroom | Richmond | – | Unknown |
| Elevated Spacious Private Bedroom | Richmond | – | Unknown |
| Scenic View- Mansion’s Private Bedroom | Richmond | – | Unknown |
| Magnificent Stylish En-suite Bedroom | Richmond | – | Unknown |
| Perfect 3BR Guest Suite Near YVR Airport | Richmond | – | Unknown |
| Charming Waterfront Suite at Footsteps of Cypress | West Vancouver | – | Unknown |
| Spacious Burnaby Family Home-Metrotown&Deer Lake | Burnaby | – | Unknown |
City of Vancouver recently accepted a donation of $100,000 worth of furniture from another short-term rental company called Sonder, with Mayor Kennedy Stewart describing the company as generous3.
City of Vancouver previously had taken action to shut down a flophouse operated by a company called Flatbook – the company that later rebranded itself as Sonder4.
.
- https://www.airbnb.ca/rooms/29536541
- https://www.booking.com/hotel/ca/modern-private-2br-in-townhouse-at-marine-drive.en-gb.html#tab-main
- https://twitter.com/kennedystewart/status/1116373898193461251
- https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/airbnb-rental-lawsuit-1.3808555
“Historically, flophouses, or British “doss-houses”, have been used for overnight lodging by those who needed the lowest cost alternative to staying with others, shelters or sleeping outside. Generally rooms are small, bathrooms are shared, and bedding is minimal, sometimes with mattresses or mats on the floor, or canvas sheets stretched between two horizontal beams creating a series of hammock like beds. ” Wikipedia – Flophouse https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flophouse
Something about the pictures of these units says these places don’t quite fit the definition of a flophouse. LPT to the author- if you are going to use inflammatory language to describe something don’t include pictures that prove you are being untruthful.