Austin Plans Crackdown on Unlicensed Short-Term Rentals

[David Ivy]

The City of Austin has entered into a pilot contract with Seattle-based company, Host Compliance, to provide data on short-term rentals in the city. A Code Department memo issued July 19 this year reports more than 10,000 active STR properties in the city, only 2,500 of which are registered in accordance with the current ordnance. The memo also notes that, "Under this pilot contract, Host agrees to identify and provide location and advertising data on a total of 3,500 unlicensed properties by February 2020...The department expects to initiate enforcement action against all 3,500 properties identified." The enforcement action is supposed to occur by February 2020.

Take note if you are currently operating a short-term rental in Austin without the required registration. You can read more here and here.

[Myka Artis]

The state won't step in. Many cities in the state of Texas have already reached out to the state and the state has done nothing. Plano is technically the only city in the entire state of Texas that allows Airbnb to pay them taxes. Grapevine, Arlington, Hurst, etc have all fell victims to bans. Grapevine currently has a lawsuit in place and Arlington is starting theirs. If the STR hosts in Austin ban together with a lawyer they can put a halt on any regulations though.