Real estate rental property – Courtesy: Shutterstock – Image by Kristi Blokhin
As legislators attempt to regulate thousands of rental houses throughout Florida this month, the adage “we live where the vacation” is becoming more relevant.
A bill to preempt local governments and give the state control over vacation rentals, including advertising, registration, parking, and other aspects, is being worked on by the state senate.
Senate leadership thinks this law will pass in the next few days as residents get increasingly irritated with loud parties and bothersome neighbors.
This, according to Jared Higginbotham, owner of many vacation rentals in the Bay Area, will limit the alternatives available to tenants.
“We’re trying to allow guests to live like locals, and if it’s in the city’s best interest to keep tourists away from the locals, then we are no longer selling the same product anymore,” said Higginbotham. “The guests will get fewer options, maybe more consistent quality, but that’s the very beauty of our industry the choice, if they do this the consumer will lose choice.”
The bill’s sponsor presented his idea during the first committee meeting in December, but there was opposition from other members of the committee. Some have argued that Tallahassee shouldn’t be releasing consistency, although individual cities are aware of their unique requirements.
“The whole goal here is to try to lay out a uniform set of regulations for vacation rentals,” said the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Nick Diceglie. “There’s been concern from the vacation rental owner folks that this is a little too onerous.”
“I believe Governor DeSantis said it best when he said for us to be micromanaging vacation rentals, I don’t think that is the right thing to do,” said the opposition in the room.
Legislators have been trying for ten years to devise a strategy for holiday rentals and to increase state government authority, but local leaders have resisted.
Before this law reaches the governor’s desk, it must first pass both the House and Senate floors. However, with hundreds of rentals in the state, ranging from VRBO to Airbnb, a lot of eyes will be watching this choice over the next few weeks.
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Born and raised in South Florida, Krystal is a recent graduate from the University of Miami with professional writing experience at the collegiate and national news outlet levels. She’s a foodie who loves all things travel, the beach, & visiting new places throughout Florida.