N.S. news: Rental operators concerned over regulation changes [Video]

The Nova Scotia government is changing the rules for short-term rentals to add more supply to the housing market, but some operators say the move will put them out of business.

“It cripples us, to be very frank,” says Blake Smith, who has been renting a one-bedroom unit of the basement of his Bedford home with his wife for nearly five years.

Under the new rules, the room either has to go or be turned into a long-term rental unit.

“Our revenue loss would be drastic. We make family financial decisions based on the revenue we know that is coming in annually and monthly,” Smith says.

Smith says past experiences with a tenant who caused $10,000 worth of damage and left him with months of unpaid rent has soured him against the idea of switching to long-term rentals.

“We have not had this happen with Airbnb based on the two-way …