At least that is good news for the state. I would just go to city hall and ask: is there any regulations against short term rentals? And that would be the end of this story.
True if neighbors complain code officer can take actions against that, but If it’s allowed then it’s not their busines if income is generated
Maybe let them make the next move, beware of asking for permission ever from any government entity. Meantime she could be getting educated on the whole subject, which sounds like she is.
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@kasage00 What if that card had blown off your door? Other than contacting another lawyer I wouldn’t do anything else until I got an official notice of violation.
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That sounds like sensible advice. I’d certainly talk to another lawyer, though. It doesn’t hurt to be prepared.
I’m not sure that would be a good move. In general you don’t want to do anything to attract attention. Better, just look up the rules and regulations yourself. Maybe try to get the help of a competent librarian, if such people exist where you are.
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The library is the best place to start!
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That’s what I did: I went to city hall and asked if I can do short term rentals in Hollywood. They, without asking my adress or my name or anything at all told me yes, but I need to get a license to pay tax.
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Ok. I’m kind of allergic to public officials, myself. Plus, I’ve got a lot of misinformation from them over the years. Often they don’t know their own laws.
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This is so true!
All I could hope that in my town they know.
My crazy neighbor I am sure already complained on me and not once.
But because I am ok so far , and it’s been 8 months since we rent single house out and no legal action against me I assume I am protected by regulations
You know, sometimes code violations are complaint driven. Maybe she just got a complaint and had to show she was doing something. And then forgot about it. If the code enforcement woman was sent out to warn everyone doing Airbnb or any light business from their home, she’d be very busy indeed. It’s not like you opened a Burger King in your garage or something, come on.
I would just ignore it until you receive some other notice. Forget the attorney at this point.
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Also many local public prosecutors are way too busy to enforce laws that supposedly include new ‘developments’, such as sub-renting. They got like real criminals to worry about. LoL
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In my state, airbnb already collects taxes on behalf of the host, so I would assume its legal. I just went ahead and started mine without thinking about local issues or what neighbors think. …but then I would think if it’s legal in the state then all jurisdictions would allow it? I would think the state government overrides anything the local government says/does
i know there are minor differences in each town here in South Florida, and different fees. I asked because i have one crazy neighbor. So, i knew he would make troubles. He called city on us from day 1. Long story but if you knew, its a fact that neighbor is clinical case.
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I also researched my township’s zoning codes on the website, and all that, I even searched specifically for short term rentals and found absolutely nothing. Of course what I’m going through now, no way am I going to talk directly to the township .
I also thought (it occurred to me afterwards) that it would have been more than a mere business card with a written message if this were an actual complaint. I’m sure in that case I would have received an official violation notice…and it would have come by now…im sure they would have sent it immediately after the complaint.
Her office received a call. She went down with a card. If she was serious about citing you it would have happened by now. I’m no attorney but I don’t think you should worry too much if someone comes by with a business card. To me that’s just paying lip service to the neighbor who complained. Going through the trouble and expense of a variance is totally ridiculous. That’s if you wanted to open an actual storefront at your front door.
I don’t know. I’d be tempted to let this one go. If you find the neighbor who complained, take them aside and show them how easy it is to do ABB! If you can’t beat them, join them!
A town near me banned ABB 3 years ago. At that time, there were no bills passed in the state banning ABB.
I don’t know. I’d be tempted to let this one go. If you find the neighbor who complained, take them aside >and show them how easy it is to do ABB! If you can’t beat them, join them!
Yes, if i find the one who complained I’ll show them about Airbnb and how easy it is, not to mention the extra money (assuming they have a bedroom to spare) then they will say “if you can’t beat them, join them” then who knows, they may start an airbnb listing!
Were any bills passed for your state since then?
Yeah, i wish it did blow off my door. If i had to do it all over I would have just ignored it until I got a more official notification (if one was to come at all) and if the code officer asked why I did not respond I would have said “I never saw your business card on my door. It must have blown away in the wind”.
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That’s the impression I get also. But the town near me banned even ABB’s where owner lives and stays on the property. They have a very aggressive enforcement policy.
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We had a complaint as well and I called Baltimore County to ask about the “rules.” I found out that as long as I was living in the house, I could rent one room to someone other than family. More than one room would constitute a “boarding house.” So I have managed to put that into conversations with my neighbors, in case any of them are considering complaining!