Short Term/ Air BnB Rental Austin??

[Alison Kothmann]

Hi! I currently have a rental in Rockport, TX.  I love owning a short-term rental and understand the business better now that's its been almost 2 years that I have had the property.. I am looking to invest in a short-term in Austin, any suggestions?  I am aware of the 50% owner occupancy rule that Austin sets for Airbnb owners? Does anyone in this group have experience with this? I would appreciate any feedback.. Thank you! 

[Gary Ennis]

I own a couple of short term rental properties in Austin. It's gotten tougher for Austin STR owners in the past few years. City Council is not fond of STRs, due to a tiny handful of "party houses" that got out of control, and very vocal opposition from certain neighborhood groups (and I suspect also from lobbyists for the hotel industry).

City Council voted in 2016 to suspend issuance of Type II (non-owner occupied single family or duplex) STR licenses. And as of now, the plan is to phase out Type II STRs entirely by 2022. You can still get a Type I license (owner occupied, where you're renting out a room or ADU in your own home). And I think that Type III licenses (non-owner occupied multifamily) are still available.

You can find more info on these pages:

http://www.austintexas.gov/str

https://www.austintexas.gov/page/short-term-rental...