New Short Term Rental Rules in San Antonio, TX

[Sherylyn Holden]

I posted awhile back about the new short term rental rules in San Antonio here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/530/topics/1200417-new-...

Wanted to share a brief update on my experience and some other helpful notes:

The city is getting serious about these rules. I had one short term rental that was granted a permit earlier this year and I have been operating it for months now as an STR. The city emailed me not too long ago informing me that there was some "system error" and they approved that permit by mistake. They even sent someone from the city to the house to tell us to stop operating it as a STR. Here is the email received

"An internal audit has been completed for STR permits and our records indicate that your STR permit was issued in error due to exceeding the maximum 12.5% blockface density. Upon further review, there is 1 active Type 2 STR permit on this blockface prior to your STR application submittal, but a system glitch did not capture it on the OneStopMap. Therefore, your request for a Type 2 STR exceeded the maximum 12.5% blockface density and the only way that staff can approve this request is for the Board of Adjustment (BOA) to grant a Special Exception for the rental.

Based on this information your STR permit has been cancelled. If you would like to continue to operate as a short term rental, you will need to submit a new STR application for this property and must go to the Board of Adjustment and be granted a special exception for staff to approve this request for a Type 2 STR Permit.

The Board of Adjustment consists of eleven (11) members; you will have to get a concurring vote from nine (9) out of eleven (11) members in order to be granted the special exception. The fee to submit an application is $600.00. Please note the fee is not refundable, even if the Board denies your application. You will need to compile a convincing case as to why the cities established maximum blockface density should be exceeded in this instance. Please note that if the Board does approve your request for a special exception, you will need to get a new Special Exception every three years when you renew your STR permit."

Needless to say this is no fun. I'm being required to pay another application fee and then $600 application fee to hopefully get this approved by the Board to allow me to continue running the STR that they approved 6+ months ago. 

All this to say they are getting serious about permitting so if you are planning to invest in San Antonio in the short term rental space, MAKE SURE to check that the property is eligible for a short term rental permit given the density limits above and have a Realtor experienced with the San Antonio permitting requirements and rules. 

If you have any questions let me know! 

[Garrett Brown]

Dang, I'm sorry you have to deal with that! Thank you for informing everyone. All of the major metros in Texas are taking STRs seriously now. It's very on-brand for the city to have an error on their end when starting the process, though. Let us know how it turns out!

[Collin Hays]

Quote from @Sherylyn Holden:

I posted awhile back about the new short term rental rules in San Antonio here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/530/topics/1200417-new-...

Wanted to share a brief update on my experience and some other helpful notes:

The city is getting serious about these rules. I had one short term rental that was granted a permit earlier this year and I have been operating it for months now as an STR. The city emailed me not too long ago informing me that there was some "system error" and they approved that permit by mistake. They even sent someone from the city to the house to tell us to stop operating it as a STR. Here is the email received

"An internal audit has been completed for STR permits and our records indicate that your STR permit was issued in error due to exceeding the maximum 12.5% blockface density. Upon further review, there is 1 active Type 2 STR permit on this blockface prior to your STR application submittal, but a system glitch did not capture it on the OneStopMap. Therefore, your request for a Type 2 STR exceeded the maximum 12.5% blockface density and the only way that staff can approve this request is for the Board of Adjustment (BOA) to grant a Special Exception for the rental.

Based on this information your STR permit has been cancelled. If you would like to continue to operate as a short term rental, you will need to submit a new STR application for this property and must go to the Board of Adjustment and be granted a special exception for staff to approve this request for a Type 2 STR Permit.

The Board of Adjustment consists of eleven (11) members; you will have to get a concurring vote from nine (9) out of eleven (11) members in order to be granted the special exception. The fee to submit an application is $600.00. Please note the fee is not refundable, even if the Board denies your application. You will need to compile a convincing case as to why the cities established maximum blockface density should be exceeded in this instance. Please note that if the Board does approve your request for a special exception, you will need to get a new Special Exception every three years when you renew your STR permit."

Needless to say this is no fun. I'm being required to pay another application fee and then $600 application fee to hopefully get this approved by the Board to allow me to continue running the STR that they approved 6+ months ago. 

All this to say they are getting serious about permitting so if you are planning to invest in San Antonio in the short term rental space, MAKE SURE to check that the property is eligible for a short term rental permit given the density limits above and have a Realtor experienced with the San Antonio permitting requirements and rules. 

If you have any questions let me know! 

 Is this in a residential neighborhood?  

[Randy Dubiskas]

At the very least, I would request a refund of the original application fee as the City made a mistake causing you to have to submit again.  

[John Underwood]

This was the city's error and you shouldn't be penalized. I would consult several Attorneys and hire one to contest this.

[Jeremy Rosen]

We had a similar issue recently, but we sent them the email chain that showed we were granted a permit and it was reinstated. When it’s time to renew we probably won’t because of this exact scenario. We are t protected at renewal time. 
Try reaching out to this person and tell them you’ll gladly go through this process when your renewal date comes up, but you should be allowed to continue operating. riley boesiger at sanantonio.gov

[Matthew Tyson]

I would hope that the BOA meeting would tilt in your favor considering the error on their part. I have sat in a couple of those meetings, they sure say no a lot. Best of luck

[Andrew Steffens]

Luckily for me the state of Florida has state level protection which bars municipalities from passing new or amending their existing laws.

That said, I am seeing cities like City of Saint Pete crack down and are enforcing their laws for the first time in years.  I am seeing more bureaucracy like inspections and fees, which I can understand because some people let their places become true hazards.

I do agree what @John Underwood said and would consider lawyering up.  Maybe you can find other hosts to split the cost.

[Sherylyn Holden]

Thanks everyone for your feedback and suggestions!

@Collin H. yes this is in a residential neighborhood

I will definitely try and push back to the city and see if they will honor their previous issuance of the permit without having to go down the path with the Board.

If they say no we'll see what the Board says. If that does not go in my favor I may need to seek legal counsel. In any case, I will definitely post any updates here!

[V.G Jason]

This will require an attorney, city needs to take the fault. 

[Sherylyn Holden]

UPDATE!!

The city board of adjustment meeting was held today and we presented our case and explained that we made huge investments into the home to remodel and furnish it with the belief that we would be able to operate it as an STR since we had an approved permit.

The Board denied my request and did not take any responsibility. 

Meeting with a lawyer later this week to see if I have any case here but wanted to provide a brief update in the interim.