Osaka suspending new Airbnb-style special zone private lodging applications following backlash

Residents don’t think special zone minpaku are very special at all.

In Japanese, minpaku, or “private lodging,” refers to short-term, non-hotel rentals for travelers. It’s essentially the classification that Airbnb-style accommodations fall under, and it’s also a classification that Osaka is looking to put tighter controls on.

Minpaku are a divisive subject in Japan, and the for/against split isn’t 50/50. Most residents are uncomfortable with the idea of the house next door or the apartment unit above them getting turned into an unstaffed hotel, and vocal opposition to the system has meant that minpaku operate under a handful of restrictions. Most notably, they’re only allowed to operate for a maximum of 180 days per year, allowing them to take advantage of seasonal spikes in demand for a destination, but preventing them from becoming full-time inns.

However, in certain parts of Japan the local governments have authorized tokku minpaku, or “special zone private lodgings.” Like minpaku, these are buildings originally intended to be apartment rooms or detached homes which can be rented out by paying guests, but unlike normal minpaku, these special zone properties have no restrictions on the number of days they can operate, and can have guests staying in them every night of the year.

Tokyo’s Ota Ward and Kita Kyushu City are among the municipalities that allow special zone minpaku, but the vast majority are found in Osaka City. Osaka City has around 5,800 special zone minpaku, more than 90 percent of the total in Japan, and the number has been rising. On September 30, though, the Osaka City government said that it plans to suspend applications for new special zone minpaku.

As mentioned above, Japanese residents tend to be very unhappy when minpaku pop up in their neighborhoods. The Osaka City government has been flooded with complaints regarding private lodgings and guest conduct this year, with the total number on pace to reach roughly 600, a 50-percent increase over last year. The most common complaints include noise and litter, as private homes and apartments often aren’t built with the same amount of sound-deadening as hotels, nor do they have cleaning staffs of the size hotels do.

Among residents, the long-term-relationship nature of being neighbors is usually enough to keep everyone civil and considerate, but there’s less pressure to keep your partying under control or clean up after yourself if you’re not going to be sticking around very long. Perhaps for that reason, special zone minpaku do have the extra regulation that they can only rent to guests staying for two or more consecutive nights, but Osaka residents have lodged complaints about this rule being ignored. Unlike hotels, special zone minpaku aren’t required to have a front reception desk or any on-site staff, so by the time residents can contact the authorities the following day, inconsiderate guests can be gone before having to accept any kind of accountability for their actions. It’s also estimated that some 40 percent of special zone minpaku are managed by Chinese nationals or companies, with potential cultural and language barriers further complicating the situation.

In addition to Osaka City, 27 other municipalities in Osaka Prefecture (of which Osaka City is a part) have also said that they are planning to suspend new applications for special zone minpaku. Osaka City is expected to formally close applications sometime following the upcoming National Strategic Special Zone Conference in November.

Source: Asahi Shimbun, Yomiuri Shimbun, Asashi Shimbun (2)
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