Making a Business of "Residential Use": The Short-Term-Rental Dilemma in Common-Interest Communities
Abstract
Many people are familiar with the convenience of booking a cheap weekend stay using Airbnb, VRBO, and similar home-sharing sites. But as this practice becomes more widespread, short-term rentals of fewer than thirty days are contributing to a growing number of negative externalities: Cities such as Los Angeles and New York are battling with the conversion of properties into rogue hotels that slip underneath regulation, which has led to rising rents and a shortage of affordable housing. On a smaller scale, residential communities are being pestered by a steady rotation of disruptive guests. This Comment argues that the popular common-interest community model is well-suited to regulate damaging short-term rentals. With careful planning, these communities can implement tailored and enforceable restrictions on rentals. As a stopgap, however, courts should interpret ¿residential use¿ requirements to prohibit short-term-rental activity that most closely resembles a business.
Recommended Citation
Cai Roman,
Making a Business of "Residential Use": The Short-Term-Rental Dilemma in Common-Interest Communities,
68
Emory L. J.
801
(2019).
Available at:
https://scholarlycommons.law.emory.edu/elj/vol68/iss4/3