AUSTIN (KXAN) — As tens of thousands of people flock to Austin for major events like the Austin City Limits Music Festival and the F1 race, the majority stay in short-term rentals like AirBnB and VRBO. I will do it. City of Austin.
Even as the Austin City Council debates ways to get property owners into compliance, thousands of short-term rentals remain without city-required licenses, according to the city’s Department of Development Services. It is said that KXAN previously reported that previous crackdowns on unauthorized rentals faced legal challenges.
As of Thursday, the department said there were 2,201 active short-term rental licenses “ranging from single-family homes to multi-family properties.”
The City of Austin said there is no way to accurately track all short-term rentals in the city, but AirDNA (which the city previously used to provide estimates to the City Council) estimates there are more than 11,000 short-term rentals total. It is assumed that it is rented. Austin rentals.
Coach Jose Roig told city councilors last year that number would rise even further during big events such as the ACL or F1.
This was a story KXAN covered just over a year ago, and the numbers haven’t changed much since then. The city estimated the number of active licenses in 2022 to be just under 2,000.
“Getting short-term rental operators to register their properties is a challenge for so many different communities. We need to make it easy for operators to do that, but so far the city has ,” said Matt Curtis, founder of Smart City Policy Group.
Curtis, an Austin expert on the best policies for short-term rentals, said cities with higher compliance rates typically have lower registration fees and more time to make sure property owners are aware of the need for permits and strict compliance. He said it has a strong engagement program.
“We’re trying to make sure that people who aren’t registered are fined if they don’t register,” Curtis explained. He cited San Antonio as an example.
The city of San Antonio told KXAN it has 3,240 active short-term rental licenses, more than 1,000 more than Austin, but the overall number of properties is lower. There are approximately 6,000 rental properties in San Antonio overall, according to AirDNA data.
“Code Compliance remains committed to working with our community to protect the quality of life for those living in and visiting Austin. Anyone with concerns about the Code should contact Austin 3-1-1. We encourage you to report it,” an Austin Development Services Department spokesperson wrote.