Dear Claire – Renting My Home on Airbnb
Navigating the Regulations and Process for Airbnb Rentals in Portland
Today on Dear Claire, we’ll be talking about Airbnb Rentals.
Can I use my house as an Airbnb Rental? I get this question a lot as people are wondering can I do it, and what’s involved? There’s a lot of changing regulations as the City of Portland is making it harder and harder. Which makes sense on some level because it takes housing stock away from possible rentals for people who live here, causing house stock to become more scarce.
So what’s involved when you want to use your property through Airbnb? You have to fill out a (and I’m not even kidding 10 page) permit application. Once filled out it can then be notarized, to prove that you live here and it’s your house. You have to send notices to everyone that lives around you, notifying them of your application process. Lastly, you have to of course mail the City a check with your application.
I have spoken with some people who started the application process a few months ago. They’re waiting for a follow up visit from the City inspector to come out and make sure they have smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors. They haven’t heard anything yet, so I’m guessing the volume of permits they’re receiving is overwhelming the City. So far It’s taking them several months to process these applications. If you’re considering this process, I would say get on the ball soon because, if say for instance, I want to go on vacation to Europe for three weeks and I want to Airbnb my house, that permit will not be finalized. You apply for the permit right now because it might be six months before the City actually approves it.
And if you don’t have that permit through the City of Portland and you’re renting it out through Airbnb, they’ll fine you $1,000 to start, and it goes up from there – second offense $2,000, third offense even more. So it’s not something to be trifled with. It’s now a very involved process, which is not at all what it was like last year.
Be sure you look up the necessary information on Airbnb, and the City’s website. It’s going to take you some time and money, but the process is well worth it because if your neighbor gets annoyed by somebody renting your house for a night, you could get reported, which happened to a client of ours, and it’s a nightmare. It’s $1,000 fine and you’ll probably get reject when you try to apply in order to follow the rules.
I hope your day is going well and feel free to reach out with any questions real estate related. I’m here for you. Take care.