Victory over neighbors: Short-term rentals on Airbnb approved
The inspector for multi-family housing in Haifa approved short-term apartment rentals on Airbnb and Booking, despite neighbors' objections. The decision joins a series of conflicting rulings on the subject, and the opponents have already appealed to the District Court.
Is it possible to rent out apartments in Israel for the short term via Airbnb and Booking? Another case has reached the judicial authorities, highlighting the system's difficulty in forming a unified position on this matter.
The current case concerned a building constructed by a purchasing group under the TAMA 38 program on the first line to the sea in Haifa, on Aaron Rosenfeld Promenade in the Bat Galim neighborhood. Five project initiators, who built 23 apartments, decided to rent out their units for the short term via Airbnb and Booking. The neighbors, unhappy with the frequent turnover of guests, launched a legal challenge. 12 apartment owners turned to the inspector for multi-family housing in Haifa, Yael Leibovich, with a demand to stop the activity immediately.
From a quiet residential building to a commercial property
The plaintiffs, represented by attorney Yael Ben-David Schmelzer, argued that renting out the apartments turned the quiet building into a commercial property. According to them, the traffic creates dirt in common areas and causes accelerated wear and tear on elevators and gates. Furthermore, they noted that the multi-family home bylaws permit use for "residential" purposes only.
Conversely, the building's developers, represented by attorneys Guy Hirsch and Guy Feibish, rejected the accusations. They clarified that during the marketing stage, buyers were informed that the building's units were "intended for hotel use," and there was never an intention to prohibit short-term rentals. They even offered to fund a larger portion of cleaning expenses if it turns out that guests are indeed leaving dirt behind.
The inspector's ruling and the original intent
Inspector Leibovich chose to reject the neighbors' lawsuit. In her ruling, she determined that the term "residential" in the partnership agreement is not unequivocal and that the parties' intent at the time of signing must be examined. She relied, among other things, on early correspondence between one of the buyers and the attorney who drafted the agreement, in which it was explicitly raised that short-term rental was not excluded.
In her decision, the inspector also cited an opinion from the Attorney General, which emphasizes that a multi-family home's bylaws should not be interpreted in a dry legal manner only. According to the opinion, one must trace the subjective understanding of the signatories, meaning each case must be evaluated on its own merits.
Although other courts have previously ruled that "residential" does not include short-term rental, Leibovich was convinced that in this case, it was the original intent. The plaintiffs, for their part, do not intend to give up, and their representatives have already announced that they have initiated a procedure in the District Court with the goal of changing the multi-family home's bylaws.
