Lincoln proposing new regulations could affect short term rentals
The city of Lincoln is proposing new regulations for short term rentals that could possibly put several out of business.
By News Channel NebraskaLINCOLN - The city of Lincoln is proposing new regulations for short term rentals that could possibly put several out of business.
According to the city's website, it is proposing that all short term rental owners must live in their property for at least half the year.
The city said it's based off of several cities in the region including Kansas City, Denver, Boulder; Fort Collins and Madison.
Airbnb property owner Zach Harsin said this could be because short term rentals are becoming more popular than hotels.
According to Airbnb, there are nearly 1,400 Airbnb's in Lancaster County. It also said there has been an 84 percent increase in Airbnb guests since July.
"To start this extreme on not allowing people that don't live in their residencies, it really just didn't make sense to me," Harsin said.
This proposed regulation comes after Gov. Ricketts signed into law allowing short term rentals to operate in city limits.
It also allows the Nebraska Department of Revenue to enter in tax agreements with short term rentals.
Harsin said, "I fully understand the safety concerns and desiring to collect the taxes. I just hope this isn't an artificial regulation they're trying to put in place to stop small businesses and investors from being able to do things like this."
The city has a link for the proposed regulations on the city's website.
The city will bring this proposition to public debate on Jan. 21 at Culler Middle School and Cavett Elementary on Jan. 29. Both meetings will start at 5 p.m.