In Arlington, a push to regulate short-term rental homes, like the kind you find on websites like Airbnb, could put some property owners out of business and those owners believe the proposal would infringe on their rights as homeowners.
Arlington City Councilman Charlie Parker wants to restrict the system to only allow property owners to rent out the home they live in on a short-term basis. That's anything less than 30 days.
The proposal would keep people who own second or third properties from putting them on sites like Airbnb, though longer rentals would still be allowed.
Parker said it's the properties that target the weekend crowd in town for a Cowboys or Rangers game that are most likely to draw noise complaints or big parties and he said his plan would let neighbors hold each other accountable.
"I've gotta return to that home and I've gotta face my neighbors and they may be out on my lawn with pitchforks and torches but the bottom line is, I'm responsible for what happens in my home," Councilman Parker said. “And if my neighbors are not approving of that, then I have an issue with my neighbors and that’s serious.”
Other possible changes include banning short-term rentals from certain neighborhoods and limiting how many people can stay in one.
Rental owners NBC 5 spoke to said the changes would violate their property rights.
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Council members are holding a special meeting on the issue on Tuesday at 12:30 at city hall. They hope to have an ordinance ready to vote on by their May 8th meeting.
