http://www.ksbw.com/article/monterey-clamps-down-on-short-term-rentals/12504058
MONTEREY, Calif. —The city of Monterey announced it has plans to clamp down on short-term rentals starting Oct. 1.
Renting your home, or even a room in your home, for less than 30 days is prohibited in Monterey and a year ago the city also banned the advertisement of short-term rentals.
On Sunday, the city plans to start cracking down on those found breaking the rules. It has hired a third party, Host Compliance, to help it find people listing their homes on sites like Airbnb and Vacation Rental By Owner.
Principal Planner with the city of Monterey Elizabeth Caraker said those found in violation will receive a letter giving them 15 days to stop advertising their rental. If they do not comply, the city will fine them $100 for the first day, $150 for the second day and $200 a day every day after that until the listing is removed.
People caught in the act of actually renting out their homes face even bigger fines, up to $1,000 a day.
“The residents in Monterey are really concerned about the impacts to the neighborhoods; some, but not all, renters are less courteous to their neighborhood,” Caraker said.
The argument against short-term rentals is that they become party houses, they increase the number of cars parked on the streets, and they remove houses from the long-term rental market.
Many in Monterey do not agree with this argument.
“They don’t bother me,” said New Monterey resident Isaac Luger.
Luger lives in a home that sits on the same property as a short-term rental and he thinks it should be up to the property owner to decide what to do with his or her home. The long-term tenant said he also likes to use vacation rentals himself and thinks STRs can bring money into a city.
“If I’m somebody who wants to come here and see Monterey during the busy peak seasons of tourism, you can’t always get a hotel or a motel to stay in, so Airbnb or short-term rentals are perfect for attracting tourists to your city,” he said.
Luger’s landlord Janet Gordon is one of those people who runs an STR and she says the reason she does it is simple.
“Money, making ends meet,” she said.
Gordon built her New Monterey home in 2004 and she owns a small business in Old Monterey but during the recession things got tough.
“2008 is when my business went really downhill and I was scrambling to make ends meet for so many years, so that’s when I finally decided to do the switchover,” Gordon said about her decision to list her home on vrbo.com two years ago.
Gordon moved into a smaller home adjacent to her STR and personally asked all of her neighbors if they would have a problem with her renting out the house short-term. So far, she hasn’t had a problem, but said if she receives a letter from the city she will cease and desist.
STR advocate Jan Leasure said the city clampdown will hurt some homeowners.
“Some people do need the income to keep their houses,” she said.
Leasure owns Monterey Bay Property Management, a vacation rental company. Her rentals comply with city regulations and must be rented for 30 days or more. She said enforcement on the issue is going to be a long-term game.
“If they want to spend the taxpayer’s money that way then that’s what they decide, but it seems foolish to fight something that is coming anyway,” she said.
Caraker said there are about 200 STR listings in Monterey and the city is dedicated to shutting them down.