Airbnbs and Vrbos Will Have to Get Safety Inspections
Mom and Pop—and their corporate competitors—will have to prove they’re meeting home safety requirements before offering short-term rental houses for vacationers in unincorporated St. Charles County.
The County Council in July created new rules for short-term rental housing, such as dwellings listed on Airbnb or Vrbo, requiring all operators to undergo safety inspections and get a business license.
The safety checks will include proper smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, well-maintained electrical systems, and the absence of any fire hazards, along with other factors. Houses with basement bedrooms must also have lower-level doors or escape windows.
Each rental unit must also have a local contact person who can get to the property within 45 minutes if there’s a problem.
Licenses are good for two years, but could be revoked if the property is being used as a party house or event venue for group gatherings.
A $200 licensing fee is charged to pay for staff time on building inspections, plus a $25 application fee.
The new rules apply to existing short-term rentals as well as future ones, but are only effective in unincorporated areas. (City governments manage their own regulations for such businesses.)
Enforcement of the licensing requirements won’t begin until six months from now. Violators who operate without a license could be fined up to $500 per day.
An initial draft of the licensing requirements would have prevented short-term rental owners from having two units within 600 feet of each other, intending to limit their density in any one neighborhood. That prohibition was scrapped after existing owners complained the rule would unfairly harm their businesses or waste the investments they made in fixing up rundown houses.
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