Daily Regulatory Notes 10/11/2024

Springfield, MO

During its meeting Thursday night Springfield Planning and Zoning Commission considered significant changes to its short-term rental ordinance first passed in 2019. The changes would attempt to simplify the the current application process by standardizing the the application process and density determination while limiting the ability for an applicant to appeal.

Under the new proposal, both the consent signature model and the blockface density requirement would be revised.

Rather than consent, the new policy outlines a protest model where a request would be approved unless at least two or 30% of adjacent property owners oppose it. If an application is denied because of protest, the owner could appeal but this time to P&Z, which would have the final authority instead of council. - Springfield has higher Airbnb, VRBO rates than other cities. Here's what could change

In addition to the proposed zoning and density changes, significant updates to hosting platform responsibilities have been included. Under the proposal platforms would be responsible for tax collection and remittance, providing a list of operators to the city, and only allow transactions to be booked with licensed properties.  

The City Council will host a public hearing on the matter during its November 4th meeting.

Idaho

After SB 1379 went into effect on July 1, 2024, state agencies have almost removed all children from temporary housing in Airbnbs. 

Difficult-to-place youth had been a rising problem for the department. From November 2022 to November 2023, the agency placed 179 foster youth in short-term rentals because they lacked other places to go, the Idaho Press previously reported.

Last November, leadership at the agency said there were usually between 15 and 28 children staying in the rentals at any time. - Idaho closes nearly all short-term rentals housing foster youth

Monterey County, CA

Regulations on short-term rentals operating in unincorporated and inland areas of the county go into effect on October 14, 2024. Rentals operating in the Coastal Commission controlled areas will have more time to adjust as it is still under review. 

On Sept. 10, the Board also adopted ordinances requiring annual licenses and registrations for vacation rental operators. These new ordinances establish three types of Vacation Rentals:

Homestays are allowed countywide and require the property owner stay in the home while it is rented;

Limited Vacation Rentals are allowed countywide and allow a house to be rented three times or fewer per year; and 

Commercial Vacation Rentals are not allowed in Big Sur, Carmel Highlands, Moss Landing residential zones and Carmel Valley residential zones. Outside these areas, Commercial Vacation Rentals may be allowed subject to approval of a Use Permit (inland) or Coastal Development Permit (coastal). Commercial Vacation Rentals allow a whole house rental more than three times per year. - Vacation Rentals Ordinances to take effect in parts of Monterey County on Monday

County of Monterey Housing and Community Development Department is hosting a webinar for residents to learn about the new vacation rental ordinances on Monday, Oct. 14, from 5 to 6 p.m. (Webinar ID: 945 6627 0205; Passcode: 971935; Dial in: +1 669 900 6833).

Maine

The state’s Accessory Dwelling Unit law (LD 2003) that passed in 2022 mandating local ordinances to allow ADUs has created conflicts with local town’s trying to determine what type of rentals they want to permit, long term rentals or short?Boothbay has set its minimum stay for these rentals at one month and Edgecomb at 90 days, while others like Boothbay Harbor continue to discuss what they will allow.

Graham spoke about the difficulty in financing an ADU which she said averages $375,000. "Essentially you need cash or a line of credit," she said. "Banks don't consider an ADU as more than a 'feature' and don't consider the residential or income value. That's a problem for people who want to build ADUs for family members. They can't get financing products to do that other than a line of credit."

"The people who can afford to build an ADU are those who can currently afford to buy here," she. She said Belfast had long allowed the units before LD 2003 but, due to the shortage of financing products, only two people were able to build ADUs. "So it didn't really solve the problem," she said. - Is there a short-term rental problem and will ADUs help?

Pitkin County, CO

Short-term rentals operating in unincorporated Pitkin County may see changes to the short-term rental application process in coming months. During the county’s meeting on October 1st lengthy discussions were held on proposed updates to rules put into place in 2022. Short-term rental staff will take feedback from the commission and bring back changes to a future meeting.

Since then, the number of issued licenses has slowly declined. Applications per year have shrunk significantly, according to the presentation, down from 133 applications in 2022 to just 45 in 2024 (not including abandoned applications). - Pitkin County eyes short-term rental updates