Unplanned Expansions: Renting Private Homes to Tourists

This chapter presents analysis of the supply of tourist accommodation, via the collaborative economy, in London. It discusses regulatory changes that have stimulated an increase in sharing-economy accommodation supply in the city, and compares the responses by local authorities in London. The dominant intermediaries that provide platforms for homeowners to access the market are identified, and the spatial distribution of sharing economy accommodation supply throughout London is analysed. Evidence shows that while centrally-located boroughs dominate the London collaborative economy accommodation offer, many peripheral boroughs which aren’t typically associated with tourism also provide significant capacity, creating potential for extension of the destination offer.