The Dallas Short-Term Rental Alliance is offering an Emergency Short-Term Accommodations Program connecting those who need shelter to available rentals with power, heat and water.
The program is open for both accommodations-seekers and accommodations-providers to sign up.
"Short-term rentals are not just a singled out community or ecosystem, but we are a part of this city," said Danielle Lindsey, owner of the rental service Prepped Place.
Lindsey said short-term rentals are for more than just entertainment and can help out when needed too.
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"We are not just dwellings for entertainment, we are shelter providers and experience makers, and when the going gets tough, we step up to the plate. When the hotels were overcrowded or without power, we opened our doors and our staff took risks to ensure others were able to survive. With kindness, we gave rest and comfort to the worried."
Prepped Place set up all 76 of their properties earlier this week and all have been booked up.
They've been helping countless families stuck with no power or water, including one family with two young children whose home nearly reached freezing temperatures.
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She asked the Dallas Short-Term Rental Alliance to share her story because "this may shed light on how valuable this industry is," she said.
Since the Emergency Short-Term Accommodations Program was created on Wednesday, over a dozen hosts and managers across Dallas have offered up spaces at free and discounted rates and more are signing up every hour.
The requests for accommodations are beginning to outstrip supply and we expect the needs to grow as Dallas thaws out," said David Krauss, co-president of the Dallas Short-Term Rental Alliance.
Krauss is willing to do all he can to help out the community.
"We are committed to doing everything we can to find accommodations for everyone we can. Taking care of others is in the short-term rental community's DNA. We did the same thing in the early months of the pandemic. This program is a no-brainer. I only wish we could help more."
Anyone looking for accommodations during this situation can reach out to the Dallas STRA via the request form at DallasSTRA.org/Emergency-Accommodations.
