The Austin City Council is starting 2025 where they left off in 2024 – undermining single-family neighborhoods. They are expanding the authorization for short-term rentals (STRs) to “all residential uses in all zoning districts with a valid STR license”.   The new ordinance says that “Short-term rental use cannot be prohibited”.

Council members claim they want to increase housing in the city of Austin. Yet, this STR proposal will reduce available housing in Austin.  Every STR takes a home available for a family off of the market. Additionally, many STRs disrupt the lives of those around them with partygoers and inconsiderate out-of-towners

The City has not demonstrated that it will provide the budget and staff necessary to enforce the ordinance’s licensing requirements and police those STRs that disturb the peace.  Currently there are around 2200 legal STRs in the city and  at least seven times more that are not legal as shown in the “Inside Airbnb database”.  There has been little enforcement of the illegal STRs.

The City’s rationale for these amendments is that they must conform our STR regulations to recent court decisions, but they go beyond what those cases require. The court decisions do not doom the city to an endless proliferation of STRs. For example, the City could prohibit STRs on properties purchased after the effective date of the ordinance. They could reduce the disruptive impact of STRs and decrease the economic incentives by limiting the size of STRs and increasing setbacks. Those are just two examples. The City must utilize all lawful options for limiting STRs and prioritize housing for residents over the interests of tourists and investors. It has failed to do so.

If you believe that there should be reasonable limits on the number of STRs in neighborhoods across the city and that the licensing and non-disturbance requirements should be strictly and fully enforced, take these actions now while you can:

  1. Call and email your councilmember and tell them that the city needs to redraft the proposal to limit the number of future STRs to preserve housing and commit sufficient money and staffing to enforce the licensing and non-disturbance requirements of the ordinance.
  2. Then submit a comment here about your STR experiences and expectations.
  3. Tell the Planning Commission about your bad STR experience.