Many vacationers choose to stay in short-term rentals advertised by owners privately or on booking sites such as VRBO and Air BnB as a preference instead of staying at hotels.
These Short-Term Rentals (STRs) offer privacy, more living space, kitchens, sometimes pools and other features that guests can benefit from. Unfortunately, the behaviour of many guests (parking problems, noise, parties) over the years has caused uproar among neighboring home-owners who in turn call the police and/or call their Home Owner Associations, Senators, House Representatives, City Council members and such to complain. This resulted in much debate and the passing of new laws to regulate this ever-growing industry.
With the passing of AZ Senate Bill 1168, Short-Term Rentals law in Arizona permits cities and towns to license and regulate Short-Term Rentals (STRs).
To date, 6 valley cities/towns have recently passed ordinances requiring short-term rental owners to be licensed. Scottsdale, Mesa, Paradise Valley, Glendale, Peoria and Goodyear have new ordinances while others are in the process of or contemplating legislation. We just got our STR license yesterday for the law that goes into effect Jan 1st, 2023 in Goodyear. Here is a link to our STR.
SB1168 permits cities to charge up to $250 for an annual license (plus tax). Here is a link to the City of Goodyear’s website for reading about the new regulations and to complete an online application for licensing:
https://www.goodyearaz.gov/government/departments/finance/short-term-rentals-7155
The STR license in Goodyear costs $250 plus tax yearly to be licensed and in a nutshell:
-owners must let neighbors beside, across the road and in behind you know that you have a short-term rental,
-owners must carry a minimum of $500000 liability insurance
-contact info must be current and on file with the City and in case of complaints, you are required to respond within certain time frames
-sex offender background checks must be done for guests. Once you have a VRBO or Air BnB booking, you’ll have the guest’s full name and then you enter the name into a national website (from the Department of Justice) and it will let you know whether there are any records of offenses. The link to that national site is below:
https://www.nsopw.gov/en/Search/Verification#searchDiv
The way to avoid having to be licensed is if you allow 30 day minimum stays….less than 30 days is considered a short-term rental according to the definition.
Here are links to the 5 other city/town websites to learn about their ordinance and to apply:
https://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/codes/vacation-short-term-rentals
https://www.paradisevalleyaz.gov/rental
https://www.mesaaz.gov/business/licensing/short-term-rentals
https://www.glendaleaz.com/your_government/city_finances/short_term_rentals
To view homes for sale in the Greater Phoenix Real estate Area, call Laurie Lavine of Arizona Premier Realty Homes and Land, LLC at 888-494-8558, text 623-826-3545 or email him at lavineteam@gmail.com
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