In January, the Queenstown Lakes District Council wrote to almost 800 property owners, warning them they could face a $300,000 fine or two years in jail if convicted of flouting visitor accommodation rules.
Owners can register with the council to rent out rooms or houses for up to 90 days and will pay approximately 25% more in rates. Anything over 90 days requires a resource consent.
Resource consents can be for up to 180 days or with no limit. Anything over 180 days will result in a further rates increase.
Since the crackdown started, the council's received 238 visitor accommodation registrations.
Twenty accommodation-related consent applications have also been lodged this year.
Council communications manager Michele Poole said more than 100 of the initial 800 owners had not responded.
The council is now considering issuing $300 infringements if property owners do not get in touch by the end of the month.
Dalefield home owner Jan Warwick signed up with global accommodation giant Airbnb in March 2015. But she and husband Tim only applied for consent to establish a residential flat in February this year.
She also wants approval to let out both the flat and the main house for visitor accommodation, listed for $150-a-night and $2800-a-week, respectively.
Mrs Warwick did not want to comment, saying her consent was still being processed.
The application says the flat was originally a garage. Mrs Warwick applied for consent in 1994 to turn it into a flat, but council rules stipulated it should ''not be used as a separate residential flat''.
The order was ignored.
February's consent application says: ''Essentially, the plans submitted to the council were modified to say that the kitchen was to be deleted. At some point afterwards the kitchen has been established and the building is now a one-bedroom residential flat.''
An application for a Frankton Rd property acknowledges that the homeowner is breaking the rules.
''As identified in a letter from QLDC to the owner, unit B has been used as short-stay accommodation and exceeds the 90 days per year.''
Airbnb New Zealand manager Sam McDonagh said in a statement it had 2000 houses listed in Queenstown Lakes.
''In every city that we operate, we encourage our hosts to comply with local legislation and welcome the opportunity to work with Queenstown's council to find a solution that benefits both residents and visitors.'' -Mountain Scene
