The impact of a growing number of short-term rentals on communities has become a pressing issue that I've seen discussed in Park County groups, and Summit County is addressing it as well. The Town of Breckenridge released this
letter
recently:
Our community has spoken loud and clear about the changing character in Breckenridge. What we are hearing is that our quality of life and our community as we know it is in crisis. The issue is requiring us to revisit Town policies in order to preserve the soul of the Breckenridge we all know and love. Read more:
ow.ly/kaNk50G3ZE8
Dear founders Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia, and Nathan Blecharczyk, board members Angela Ahrendts, Ken Chenault, Belinda Johnson, Jeff Jordan, Alfred Lin, and Ann Mather, and all investors, hosts, and guests;
I write to you today in the hope that you will radically re-structure your company before it starts a class war in which you will almost certainly lose the lion's share of your wealth, your moral conscience, your place in history as innovators instead of oppressors, and you and your family’s physical safety.
Brian, Joe, Nathan; you started Airbnb with the best of intentions. You couldn’t afford to make rent on your San Francisco apartment, so you bought some air mattresses and served breakfast to your guests. Brilliant.
But things of changed since then.
To be clear, renting out spare rooms, attics, basements, and backyards in owner-occupied properties isn’t the problem. It’s when an investor outbids a family for a second property and turns it into a full-time Airbnb. Or worse, when a holiday rental company does so. Or worse, when a highly-leveraged hedge fund buys a swath of holiday rental companies. Or worse, when a sovereign wealth fund buys a portfolio of hedge funds. It’s why the average house will cost $10+ million within 50 years.
"Now, more than ever, the illusions of division threaten our very existence. We all know the truth: more connects us than separates us. But in times of crisis the wise build bridges, while the foolish build barriers. We must find a way to look after one another as if we were one single tribe.” -King T'Challa, Black Panther
The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it. ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is. ~Winston Churchill
My in-laws were struggling financially at one point when the housing market was slow and they were unable to sell the home they built (a high end custom home in Ft Collins). They decided to move into their trailer and Airbnb their home. It worked very well and they were able to make some money until the market recovered and they got a good price for their home.
For them, it was a brilliant move and since they lived on the property, they were able to somewhat monitor their guests so the neighbors would hardly know anyone new was there. I can see how this could be a problem in most other cases where the owners were not around. However, the guests get a review just like the owners, so I'm not sure how big of a problem this really is. Your post doesn't list the problems that the community is complaining about so I'm a little curious about what the issue is. I'm sure the local businesses love having a higher percentage of homes being occupied year round and owners don't have to worry about the government banning evictions for long term rentals.
I don't know the author of the letter cited, but this seems like a threat which he may regret making.:
I write to you today in the hope that you will radically re-structure your company before it starts a class war in which you will almost certainly lose the lion's share of your wealth, your moral conscience, your place in history as innovators instead of oppressors, and you and your family’s physical safety.
It was always the women, and above all the young ones, who were the most bigoted adherents of the Party, the swallowers of slogans, the amateur spies and nosers−out of unorthodoxy
It's been an ongoing discussion in the community groups regarding housing that's becoming unaffordable for those who live and work in Park County, but more worrisome is what the Park County Sheriff's Office is seeing. I believe Sheriff McGraw mentioned it, if not in the interview recorded with him (below), then during the Platte Canyon Chamber membership meeting last month, that they've seen an increase in calls for visitors at short-term rentals who need medical assistance after partying too hard following traveling from sea level, or not adequately preparing for mountain driving conditions and needing roadside assistance (tying up one of three deputies on duty for hours while responding). It's been a noticeable uptick in resources they have had to put toward this. These aren't long-term renters, these are guests who come for a vacation, and while they do provide tourism dollars to the area, the visitors are causing a strain on emergency services (fire and police), and I don't know that the homes are continuously filled in the winter months when businesses need more local support.
Again, the issue isn't the homeowners who rent out extra space, it's people (and corporations) purchasing 2nd homes/investment properties which reduces the inventory and drives up prices for families trying to find a place to live where they work. That letter to Airbnb isn't from a journalist, but it does list valid issues that municipalities are, or will need to be, dealing with.
"Now, more than ever, the illusions of division threaten our very existence. We all know the truth: more connects us than separates us. But in times of crisis the wise build bridges, while the foolish build barriers. We must find a way to look after one another as if we were one single tribe.” -King T'Challa, Black Panther
The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it. ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is. ~Winston Churchill
