Busloads of students at rental house in London, Ont. sparks call to tighten rules

The calls are growing louder for city council to tighten the rules governing short-term accommodations (STA’s), including those advertised on websites like Airbnb and Vrbo, after students arrived by the busload at a rented house in the Masonville neighbourhood.

Several neighbours say it’s the last straw.

Video posted on social media showed a long line of young women waiting to enter the house at 167 Sunnyside Dr. for what neighbours said was a sorority event.

Photographs taken by neighbour Marion Warren show school buses stopped in front of the house transporting women to the residential street.

“This weekend was horrific!” said Warren who lives a few doors away. “School bus loads of young females were being dropped off and apparently were being interviewed in this house for a sorority.”

Warren said neighbours have been complaining for years about various groups renting the house for short stays.

There's also a pool in the backyard,” she explained. “And of course at night that sound just amplifies throughout the neighbourhood.”

167 Sunnyside Dr. in London, Ont. (Daryl Newcombe/CTV News London)Coun. Jerry Pribil confirms he has received many complaints about the impact the short-term rental is having on neighbours.

“It's on a repeated basis,” Pribil told CTV News. “It's truly unfortunate that we've got individuals in London who are operating under the short-term accommodation agreements, and they are not respecting the rules we have in place. It’s also not respectful to the neighbourhood.”

City hall won’t provide specific details about enforcement at 167 Sunnyside Dr.

However, in a written statement, city staff confirm, "Municipal Compliance has an active order with this property. We continue to use corrective actions under the city’s bylaws to address violations at this property.”

Both STA hosts and online advertising platforms must have a valid municipal licence to operate in London if they offer accommodations for periods of 29 days or less.

A school bus drops off young women in front of the house at 167 Sunnyside Dr. in London on Sept 21, 2024 (Source: Marion Warren)Importantly, short-term rentals are permitted only at an owner's principal residence.

They must follow all other bylaws including property standards and the sound bylaw.

The penalty for operating a short-term accommodation without a license begins at $500.

Pribil would like an early review of London's STA bylaw (2022) to ensure quicker resolutions for neighbours, “It's not that our bylaw enforcement don't do their jobs. They do their jobs, but we got to give [the bylaw] more power so we can act faster, more effectively and more efficiently.”

No one answered the door or responded to the video doorbell when CTV News visited the house on Monday.