Paris bans key boxes for short-term rentals. On the eve of the Games, the latest battle against the Airbnb phenomenon

Paris think about a drastic stop for the key box, the “key boxes” increasingly used in the practice of short-term tourist rentals. On the eve of Olympic Gamesthe capital beyond the Alps is preparing to launch a measure that in France – but also to Venicewhere a similar decision is currently under discussion – seems to be one of the key points, literally, in the fight against the degeneration of the holiday home phenomenon.

Next month, the Advise from the Ville Lumière will vote on a proposal to abolish the presence and installation of these structures, which as is known allow tenants and hosts to hand over and return the keys to the rented house at any time and often without meeting, in urban public spaces. The idea is to continue to allow the installation of key boxes in private properties, including condominium spaces, but only as long as there is the unanimous consent of the owners. Rules that, in some way, already exist in France, but which will be strengthened and/or applied restrictively

Already “out” in Nice and in 5 other French cities

If the proposal is approved, Paris will join a group of six transalpine cities, including Nice, Lille And Annecy, which have already abolished key boxes in public spaces and adopted a similar restriction for condominium areas. In these locations, it happens that, where the municipal police discover key boxes, they apply labels, requiring the owner to contact the municipality, within two weeks, for approval. If the owner does not respond within the established deadlines, the key boxes are removed, which happens anyway if the structures are located in positions deemed illegal, or if, in the case of condominium spaces, unanimous approval is lacking.

The first reason behind the ban is aesthetic in nature. With the explosion of the phenomenon Airbnb, these mini-safes have appeared almost everywhere in global tourist destinations, and in cities of art even in monumental areas. Along the lines of what is happening in Venice, where the issue has called into question the Archaeological Superintendence, fine arts and landscapein Paris one of the promoting councilors, Ian Brossatdescribed key boxes as “pollution”, a “visually intrusive reminder of how many of our neighbors are just passing by”.

The city hopes such a restriction could also help by cracking down on illegal rentals by simply adding another layer of monitoring. Key boxes are actually one of the tools of anonymity that make managing a holiday apartment easier for those who continue to want to ignore local regulations on permits or the maximum number of nights per year.

The pros and cons

The initiative arouses opposing opinions. There are those who think that limiting key boxes is just an ineffective – and perhaps even petty – way to repress a phenomenon that would survive without problems by finding other methods for exchanging homes, leaving everything as before. However, there are those who argue that, given the absolute lack of official data on the phenomenon of short-term rentals, and the objective difficulty of any application of the control rules on the legality or otherwise of the exchanges, a measure like this could bring a minimum of order and relief in areas where some owners rent holiday homes. To the advantage of the reception itself but also of the inconvenience of the condominiums.