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Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis Vol. 60 No. 7 2025

Better Tax Enforcement Moderates Airbnb’s Pressure on Housing Costs

Jesse A. Ellis1; David G. Kenchington2; Jared D. Smith1; Roger M. White2

1 North Carolina State University Poole College of Management · 2 Arizona State University W.P. Carey School of Business

open access

Abstract

The growing popularity of home-sharing platforms such as Airbnb, partly fueled by hosts’ ability to evade local taxes and regulations, has been shown to elevate housing costs by reallocating long-term housing units to the short-term rental market. This study assesses whether enhanced tax enforcement can mitigate this trend. We analyze staggered tax collection agreements between Airbnb and Florida counties, wherein Airbnb collects taxes from the hosts directly. Using a difference-in-differences methodology, we find these agreements significantly slow the growth of housing costs, highlighting the importance of tax policy in addressing the sharing economy’s influence on housing affordability.

DOI
10.1017/s0022109024000723
Volume
60
Issue
7
Pages
3591-3621
Language
en
Sources
crossref openalex

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