Asheville struggles to rein in illegal short-term rentals

HOME, SWEET HOME: The short-term rental market continues to boom in Asheville, which ranks as the second-best place for investors to rent their homes on Airbnb, according to SmartAsset. Graphic by Scott Southwick

From New York to Los Angeles, America’s short-term rental business shows no signs of slowing down, and the Asheville area is in the running to lead the pack. A June 26 report from financial technology company SmartAsset named the city the second-best place for investors to rent their homes short-term: The average Airbnb rate here is 3.69 times the average daily rent. The study also found that, for the second year in a row, the Asheville area had the highest percentage of Airbnbs as a share of local housing stock in the entire country at 3.56%. SmartAsset’s analysis didn’t include other popular home-sharing services such as HomeAway, VRBO and others.

Amid concerns that STRs are contributing to housing shortages and rising home prices, Asheville City Council attempted to rein in the practice last year by voting to implement the city’s strictest regulations to date. But despite the law — and a $500-per-day fine for violators — hundreds of illegal rentals still operate throughout the city.

Cracking down

While the current ordinance allows legally permitted homestays, through which residents can rent up to two rooms while living in the same house, it restricts entire home rentals of less than 30 days within almost the entirety of Asheville city limits. Property owners who wish to establish a new whole-house STR must receive conditional zoning approval from City Council. 

In unincorporated areas of Buncombe County, short-term rentals of up to two single-family residences encompassing a maximum of 9,000 square feet are allowed; no permit is required. Woodfin, Weaverville, Black Mountain, Montreat and Biltmore Forest have their own ordinances relating to STRs, according to the Buncombe County Planning and Development department.

To ensure that homeowners adhere to Asheville’s regulations, Planning and Zoning Administrator Shannon Tuch says the city uses a blend of complaint-driven enforcement and hands-on investigation for identifying illegal STRs.

“The majority of our zoning enforcement, in general, is done through complaints. People complain about something or they see something they don’t think is right, and they check with us and we investigate it,” Tuch explains. “Short-term renting is really the only area of zoning enforcement where we actually do some proactive enforcement.”

That city-initiated work, Tuch says, includes creating a database of STRs as they appear on rental sites such as Airbnb and VRBO. Asheville has contracted with Host Compliance, a San Francisco-based software platform, to compile such a database since fall 2016; the service currently costs taxpayers around $26,000 annually. 

Ulrik Binzer, founder and CEO of Host Compliance, says his company finds STRs by scouring listing information from 54 different online rental sites each day. The company then cross-references the data with other publicly available information, such as pictures, names and phone numbers, to determine where the property is located and who it is operated by and shares the findings with clients.

“I would say that we’re very accurate,” says Binzer. “When we have found the property, we then document that match to prepare a case for the city. We potentially then have the smoking-gun evidence [of noncompliance] that they need in order to prosecute that case.”

More than 250 cities across the country have sought assistance from the company to crack down on STRs. In Asheville’s case, Host Compliance has provided much-needed help in organizing and pinpointing listings rather than waiting for neighbors to complain, Tuch says.

“When Host Compliance first contracted with us, the number of notices that went out increased dramatically, because we now suddenly had all of the addresses. Beyond that initial flush of activity, it’s been relatively steady,” Tuch says. “And also the number of homestays and listings in general has steadily increased, so we have a pretty large database now.”

Crunching the numbers

According to data provided by the city on July 1, Asheville has 1,172 listings currently advertised on Airbnb that meet the definition of a STR. Of those listings, 57% are legally permitted, 24% are not in compliance with the ordinance and 19% have yet to be classified by Host Compliance. 

Around a quarter of those noncompliant listings are associated with a homestay permit, according to a city spreadsheet. Tuch says the city takes additional steps to verify the property owners before sending a notice of violation, she didn’t comment on the percentage of listings on which the city has taken action.

“I think you need to actually really review the information. You have to identify that there’s a violation. You have to identify the address. You have to have proof that there is illegal renting going on,” Tuch explains. 

Binzer, however, points out that many cities using Host Compliance also subscribe to an automated process that notifies homeowners when illegal listings are identified. Given Asheville’s size, he says, Host Compliance could send automatic notices of violation to illegal STR operators on the city’s behalf for around $15,000 per year, with the option of adding a 24-hour hotline to manage resident complaints for about $12,000 annually. He estimates that those additional services could bring the number of illegal rentals down substantially.

“We have places that have 95%-100% compliance,” Binzer says. “I’m not going to tell them how to run the city, but the point is that if you were to send a letter every time someone is found to be in violation, you’d probably have a higher level of compliance. It’s just a question of policy. You basically have to decide if you want the problem solved or not solved.”

But Tuch maintains that there are limitations to the data Host Compliance can provide. While the service cuts down on the most tedious aspect of enforcement — identifying potential rule breakers — city officials should still make the final judgement on whether properties are violating local ordinances, she says.

“Just looking at a listing and making a conclusion that it meets the definition of a short-term rental and proceeding with the notice of violation, I don’t think, is doing a thorough job,” Tuch says. “I think if we use their services, it could result in notices that are not accurate. We are the stewards of that information, and I don’t think we feel comfortable delegating that to a third party.”

Whack-a-mole

Tuch says that even with Host Compliance, Asheville isn’t always able to identify illegal rentals. Some STR operators muddy the city’s database and attempt to circumvent the rules by providing false information on permit applications and frequently relisting properties on multiple sites under different names.

“One of my biggest frustrations with enforcement is the people who work so hard to break the rules — people who know what the rules are and are being deliberately evasive,” Tuch says. “They’re really investors using their investment properties to build their wealth rather than thinking of the housing security for people who live in them. There’s a lot of people who are operating lawfully, and it’s not really fair to them, and it’s not fair for people who are trying to live in Asheville.”

Binzer agrees and says that there will always be property owners who choose to sidestep city ordinances. However, he adds, those operators will more than likely not appeal to the average visitor.

“In Asheville, where the regulations are pretty restrictive, there will always be certain operators that are going try to go underground and do shady things, and those will be hard to rein in,” Binzer notes. “The good news is that, if you try to hide everything from your listings and try to be stealthy, most people don’t really want to do that. They’ll just check into a hotel instead, because who wants to be a criminal when they go on vacation?”

Despite the illegal STRs that still fly under the city’s radar, Tuch says that Asheville is continuing to make strides in enforcement and that it’s important to consider the time, money and resources that would be needed to police compliance more aggressively. 

“In general, I think the effort has been good. I think we are doing better than most cities by comparison,” Tuch says. “There’s always more you can do, but whether that’s a good use of resources or a priority, I couldn’t really answer that.”

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

13 thoughts on “Asheville struggles to rein in illegal short-term rentals

  1. K Smith

    Asheville, like Buncombe, could use some oversight. At least enforce the rules put in place. If not, let the staff go and stop acting like there are rules. It’s ridiculous.

    • Lulz

      Reid Thompson owes at least million in fines. City needs to collect that first. And if they don’t, the.ban is.pretty much over.

      • Buncy

        Thompson’s property on Maxwell St., surrounded by commerce, blighted by tractor-trailers, and sullied to appease the powerful landed gentry who own the old A&P property, is the very kind of property where its highest and best use is STR. It’s just that City Hall has blood in its eye for him. I found it hard to believe that the city threatened to prosecute him if he set foot on _any_ city property anywhere.

        Meanwhile, Esther and her amorphous coterie are the slickest wizards at selective enforcement, construing ordinances into oblivion, false pretenses at transparency, running with the fox and hunting with the hounds, and self-serving and self-dealing.

  2. dyfed

    Nanny ordinances like the ones surrounding STRs are why I encourage nearby unincorporated areas to incorporate ahead of annexation.

    • Lulz

      Unless they collect the 7 figure fines that Reid Thompson owes, the city is powerless. And the more STRs that come up for rent, effectively means the city will eventually have to compeomise. Keep in mind that legislation is being actively pursued in Raleigh to ban STR bans under the the guise.if property rights.

  3. Lulz

    Asheville needs to come.to the realization that many here who own homes are tired of not only being left out of the economy, but also footing the bill for it. So you either lessen the tax burden on them or take a cut from them. Your choice. But the voices are multiplying in favor of STRs. You can’t have it both ways. And no one is obligated to play by the rules of those that favor corporate hotels and big developers while they see nothing but bigger tax bills and nothing else.

  4. Jim Kay

    Rather then outlaw STRs, mange them – require a license to rent, inspect the property, charge fees comparable to what hotels pay and make it a local industry that everyone can benefit from.

    • C.Michael

      Why is there no shortage of useful idiots like yourself for these communists in our corporate govt structure? Most legalities are NOT LAWFUL under Constitutional common law. Private property rights became communal properties when exactly?

    • dyfed

      There is zero need for an overbearing inspection and licensure regime on STRs, and taxes are already paid on the profits.

    • Tom

      Airbnb collects and pays over 14% occupancy tax already, paid by the guest that staying the property. That tax is in addition to the income tax hosts pay at the end of the year. These taxes amount to much higher than the property taxes paid to the county is the many ways property owners are helping the county. As a thanks you get politicians pedeling socialist agendas by lobbying groups in an attempt to take away property rights from owners and retiries that operate small business. These politicians don’t believe in a capitalist economy or the American dream. Private property owners are not responsible for subsidizing affordable housing, property owners and STR operators are already paying enough taxes to support agendas like that with the many streams of taxes they are already paying!

  5. J

    Pathetic! My local tax dollar are funding a task force to regulate what someone wants to do with their own property!!!! Criminal!!!!!!

    • buncy

      “Criminal,” huh? Zoning and planning laws have been in effect in the USA for more than a century. The regulation in cities like NYC and LA was ruled constitutional by SCOTUS. And now every city has zoning, except one or two freaks like Houston. Zoning helped separate commercial activity from residential neighborhoods, so children could play in safety, people could know and enjoy the friendship of their neighbors, and unsavory characters like AirBnB kept their grasping hands off. So you want to have a hogpen on your city property, or a sawmill, or a mini-hotel? What about the effect on the community and the people in the neighborhood? Go and read up about the greedy outsiders, like so many people who have blighted Asheville with their STRs. Just do a web search on “airbnb” and “Sedona” and observe what greedy developers and the “private neighborhood motel” industry have done to Sedona. They’ve wrecked it and now nobody can afford to live there because 20% of its housing stock has been snatched up by avaricious invaders causing housing prices to go out of sight… barbarians who stormed the gates with their greed and too many exclamation points. Family life in Sedona is so endangered that two schools have shut down, and kids that grew up there cannot afford to return.

  6. buncy

    Asheville is not struggling to enforce its zoning ordinances, or the $500 fine. City Hall is infested with unethical people who are looking the other way while whining that the law is too difficult to enforce. Well, that’s baloney. And don’t be making an example of Reid Thompson because the city has already destroyed the neighborhood character of Maxwell St. by looking the other way while 18-wheelers have turned it into a parking lot. I feel sorry for anyone who has tried to live in housing on Maxwell St. or nearby.

    Now while you’re ginning up more exclamation points and changing your monikers to make it look like someone else is writing your half-literate abuse, read this: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/they-killed-our-city-locals-feel-helpless-as-vacation-rentals-overrun-sedona-arizona/ar-AAEWSal

Leave a Reply to Lulz ×

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.