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Displaying the 15 latest comments.
Submitted | first-name | support | concern | top-concern | message |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2026-08-11 17:17:48 +02:00 | Madniah | No I do not | All of the above | Listed Availability vs. Actual Booked Occupancy (Flawed Tariff Test) | |
2026-08-11 17:09:30 +02:00 | Melissa | No I do not | All of the above | Threat to Supplemental Household Income & Rising Cost of Living | |
2026-08-11 16:23:37 +02:00 | Wendy | No I do not | All of the above | Threat to Supplemental Household Income & Rising Cost of Living | |
2026-08-11 15:34:53 +02:00 | Madira | No I do not | Threat to Supplemental Household Income & Rising Cost of Living | ||
2026-08-11 15:18:47 +02:00 | Lynne | No I do not | Threat to Supplemental Household Income & Rising Cost of Living | Flawed “Availability” Test: Taxing hosts based on open calendar days rather than actual income penalises owners whose properties sit empty off-peak. An empty flat listed online earns zero revenue yet gets hit with a commercial tax penalty. Punishing Household Survival: Middle-class families, retirees, and single-property owners rely on seasonal holiday letting to cover skyrocketing bond rates, electricity tariffs, and living costs. Inflated Prices for Guests & Tourists: Reclassifying rentals onto commercial rates increases operational costs by up to 135%. Hosts will pass these costs onto guests, making Cape Town less affordable for domestic South African families. Draconian Sanctions & POPIA Risks: Threatening property owners and tech platforms with 6 months in prison over administrative registration numbers is excessive. Automated data-sharing between global platforms and municipal databases raises personal privacy concerns under POPIA | |
2026-08-11 15:14:36 +02:00 | Mark | No I do not | All of the above | Consumer Impact: Higher Nightly Accommodation Rates & Reduced Choice | Why does this supposed best run city keep on pushing to become more socialist by the day. Just stop. You are going to be voted out come November. |
2026-08-11 15:09:39 +02:00 | Andy | No I do not | All of the above | Threat to Supplemental Household Income & Rising Cost of Living | |
2026-08-11 14:41:24 +02:00 | Suki | Not fully | Threat to Supplemental Household Income & Rising Cost of Living | ||
2026-08-11 14:25:45 +02:00 | Darren | No I do not | Threat to Supplemental Household Income & Rising Cost of Living | ||
2026-08-11 13:55:57 +02:00 | Paul | No I do not | Other | Each of the listed objections is valid in its own right. The time has, however, come to reign in this DA government's free-for-all administrative overreach and excessive taxing of rate payers, while actively working to destroy Cape Town as a residential and commercial safe haven. The DA, nor any other political party must be allowed to run rough-shot over the rate paying residents of Cape Town. | |
2026-08-11 13:34:34 +02:00 | Nkateko | No I do not | All of the above | Consumer Impact: Higher Nightly Accommodation Rates & Reduced Choice | |
2026-08-11 13:14:38 +02:00 | Elke | No I do not | Threat to Supplemental Household Income & Rising Cost of Living | I’m so sick and tired of being taxed, because this is a tax. Sick of regulations just opening more avenues for misuse. Fraud and corruption | |
2026-08-11 12:18:18 +02:00 | Annelie | No I do not | All of the above | Threat to Supplemental Household Income & Rising Cost of Living | |
2026-08-11 10:20:10 +02:00 | Tamsin | No I do not | All of the above | Listed Availability vs. Actual Booked Occupancy (Flawed Tariff Test) | Most short term rentals rely on the visitors during season and we can get booked up from November through to March. This means that if our rates are increased 2.5x what they currently are, the income we make over summer will be purely to carry our property costs through winter. There is no feasible way that any short term rental listing will survive this rates increase. So either thousands of families will lose their primary source of income and along with that their staff, or the city needs to find a different way to make their money. Many STR businesses are not going to switch to the LTR business model as the risks of protected tenant rights in South Africa are far too great. Most of the STR businesses will simply close down. This will not solve the housing shortage problem in the city. If the government changed the laws on tenants that default, the problem would be solved, as many of us would prefer the regular reliable income from long term rentals, but are too worried about the risks associated with bad tenants and inability to get them out of our valuable assets while they are not paying rental. The city should charge a tourist tax at the airport on every arrival, like Zanzibar. Millions of tourist enter every year and pay around $50 per person. That is a substantial increase in revenu without destroying families and business around Cape Town. This approach is not sustainable and will have a serious impact on many peoples livelihood. |
2026-08-11 09:07:08 +02:00 | Angela | Not fully | Data Privacy Risks, POPIA Compliance & Mandatory Platform Sharing | It is an invasion of privacy. What people do in their OWN homes has got nothing to do with council as long as they pay their rates. People hosting relatives or friends in their own homes again should be private not council business? This ruling should only apply to people who own more than one apartment and let them out regularly on short term lets. Those are the people abusing our monetary exchange rate and benefitting from short term letting? |
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- Level Playing Field:
Traditional hotels, B&Bs, and registered guesthouses pay commercial rates and utility tariffs. Dedicated full-time Airbnbs operating as commercial businesses should contribute equal municipal rates. - Infrastructure Contribution:
High-density tourist rentals place heavier loads on municipal roads, water, waste, and security infrastructure in tourist hubs. Commercial rates ensure fair municipal cost recovery. - Consumer Protection:
A verified municipal registry helps eliminate online rental scams and fake listings, giving holidaymakers confidence in legitimate accommodation.
- Level Playing Field:
“Mandatory municipal registration protects tourists from fake listings and accommodation scams. Displaying an official City registration number guarantees the property is legitimate and traceable.”
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- Flawed “Availability” Test:
Taxing hosts based on open calendar days rather than actual income penalises owners whose properties sit empty off-peak. An empty flat listed online earns zero revenue yet gets hit with a commercial tax penalty. - Punishing Household Survival:
Middle-class families, retirees, and single-property owners rely on seasonal holiday letting to cover skyrocketing bond rates, electricity tariffs, and living costs. - Inflated Prices for Guests & Tourists:
Reclassifying rentals onto commercial rates increases operational costs by up to 135%. Hosts will pass these costs onto guests, making Cape Town less affordable for domestic South African families. - Draconian Sanctions & POPIA Risks:
Threatening property owners and tech platforms with 6 months in prison over administrative registration numbers is excessive. Automated data-sharing between global platforms and municipal databases raises personal privacy concerns under POPIA.
- Flawed “Availability” Test:
“Slapping commercial property rates on holiday lets will simply result in higher prices at checkout. Domestic South African families looking for affordable beach holidays will be priced out, while small local businesses, restaurants, and transport operators will suffer if tourist spending decreases.”