Short-term vacation rentals in Atlanta now require a permit to operate. Less than 3% have one.

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“The process has been very slow,” acknowledged Janide Sidifall, acting planning commissioner, during a presentation to city council on Tuesday.

Enforcement of the new order was due to begin on Friday, raising concerns among some short-term rental owners who described the permitting process as clumsy and onerous. But the city pushed back the enforcement date to May 2 amid calls for rule clarity.

The city council plans to postpone any punitive action until June. And officials could take further steps to amend the ordinance, which was passed last year in a bid to raise additional tax revenue, maintain a set of rules for the industry and crack down on “households.” unruly parties” which prompted nuisance complaints from neighbours.

To exploreAtlanta City Council passes short-term rental regulations

To obtain a permit, owners must submit copies of the property deed and a utility bill, pay $150, and send certified letters to their neighbors notifying them that they plan to list the unit. Rentals are taxed at the same 8% rate as hotels, with owners subject to $500 in the event of a violation.

A due to low number of applications: the new regulation prohibits non-Atlanta residents from being allowed to rent in the city, and there is a limit of only one unit in addition to the owners’ “primary residence” for those who live in Atlanta.

“It has a huge effect on a lot of people who are spending a lot of money investing in (their) businesses,” said Kathie McClure, vice president of the Metro Atlanta Short Term Rental Alliancea relatively new advocacy group of over 200 short-term rental hosts.

McClure runs what she calls a “mom and pop” Airbnb operation with her husband: two units in a duplex in Piedmont Heights, a neighborhood above where she lives.

The McClures’ permit applications for the duplex are now denied because, under the city’s interpretation, the couple are only allowed to rent one other unit that is not their home.

“I don’t see how it will be possible for businesses to operate a ton of short-term rental units under this order,” said Elijah Davis, a local attorney who reviewed the settlement. “It is absolutely aimed at ensuring that resident owners can use their property.”

Atlanta’s short-term rental market has become a major sector of the local tourism economy as Airbnb stays have become increasingly popular among tourists, business people in town, and members of the community. film and television production industry.

Landlords and investors have also benefited: In metro Atlanta, Airbnb was a source of income for more than 9,500 hosts in 2021, the company said, adding that half a million people stayed at Airbnbs in the region in the first nine months of 2021.

Last year, some officials and neighborhood leaders pushed for a tougher crackdown on the industry, proposing that the city limit the number of days properties can be listed, or ban them altogether. Regulations passed last year aim to prevent absentee landlords and the operation of “party houses,” although Airbnb has taken steps in recent years to remove listings that receive noise and nuisance complaints.

Councilman Antonio Lewis, who represents a Southside district, supports the new rules, which were sponsored in council last year by current Mayor Andre Dickens. He doesn’t want to see too many properties that could be used for long-term accommodation instead filling up with expensive short-term rentals.

“I’m trying to keep the city from becoming a de facto hotel city,” Lewis said.

According to AirDNA, more than half of the city’s listings are hosted by people who also manage at least one other short-term rental. About a fifth of listings are run by people looking after six or more properties.

Those whose only income is generated by owning and managing multiple short-term rentals now fear that this model is in jeopardy.

To exploreAirbnb welcomes Atlanta’s passage of short-term rental laws

“Essentially, it’s our full-time business,” said Rich Munroe, chairman of the McClure Group, which owns and manages a total of 30 short-term rentals. “The fact that we are completely excluded from this order is certainly concerning.”

AMSTRA hopes that the city will allow the existing lists to continue to operate by keeping them.

Another quirk in the rules: Landlords are required to license their “primary residence” as a vacation rental, even if they only plan to rent a second unit. McClure, for example, had to get a permit for her home, though she’s only trying to rent out the separate duplex she and her husband own.

“It is an unnecessary expense that we are working to change,” Councilman Amir Farokhi wrote in a bulletin to voters on Wednesday.

Enforcement of the ordinance, which falls to the Atlanta police and the chief operating officer, will be complaint-driven, said Gregory Pace, director of the city’s Office of Buildings. Investigators will not be able to proactively identify unlicensed listings.

“We currently don’t have the capabilities to comb through each of the websites, the platforms that host the short-term rentals,” Pace said.