MGM Grand Hotel fire, 1980.

To restate: one of the justifications for regulating landlords is the possibility that they may offer unsuitable, even unsafe housing, in desperate circumstances. But where's the evidence that this is happening in the short-term rental market?

Gathering statistics for short term home/apartment rentals would be rather tricky. But apartment fires seem a frequent enough occurrence: http://cbs5.com/local/fatal.fire.firefighters.2.1823700.html... of 8 died in fire while family visiting relatives in San Jose); http://www.wtnh.com/dpp/news/fairfield_cty/dozens-displaced-...; http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=11656807; http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/24388077/detail.html.

I have no opinion on the relative dangers of fires to residents vs short-term visitors, nor am I saying that regulation of short-term lets is necessary. I posted only to respond to the general contention that the market makes safety regulation unnecessary or superfluous.