These Are the Top 3 Dallas Short-Term Rentals for Complaints

Imagine living next door to a place rented out for wild parties every weekend. 

After many complaints from neighbors about just that sort of thing, Dallas is considering new rules for short-term rentals which could be approved this fall after years of debate.

At a meeting earlier this year, Dallas City Council members were told that 12 short-term rental homes have racked up two or more complaints in 2021 and 2020.

So, NBC 5 filed an open records request and found that three of those 12 had six or more complaints.

The one with six is a Lake Highlands home with a swimming pool.

The Airbnb listing for that house seeks $132 a night but clearly limits visitors to just four people in a private guest bedroom and says they will share the pool, kitchen, living, dining and bathrooms with the homeowner.

Jacqueline Harrill, who is listed in public records as the current owner, said she purchased it in late 2021 and began living there in January 2022. She said the complaints are all from before she was in the house and that neighbors were pleased to hear her promise to look after things differently.

“I’m going to be here. I’m going to pre-screen the people who stay here and it’s been a really positive thing,” she said. “I like having people come in from around the world and getting to share my space with them.”

Harrill said a couple staying with her right now has family in that part of Dallas, where there are not many hotels.

“It's really been a wonderful opportunity for me to earn incremental income. I pay for this mortgage myself,” she said.

Restricting short-term rentals to owner-occupied homes is one Dallas option that has been discussed to help neighbors, but also allow property owners to make some extra money.

“For years it was a party house,” she said.

The Airbnb listing for a West Dallas house with seven city complaints in the past two years says it is “perfect for your next watch party or cookout.” The listing says up to 16 guests are allowed for $342 a night.

Public records show the house has a homestead exemption. But neighbors told NBC 5 they have never seen the owner and he could not be reached for comment.

One neighbor in fear for her safety who declined to be seen or use her name because of past gunfire at that short-term rental home said she favors another Dallas option of banning short-term rentals in single-family neighborhoods.

“That is what they should do. I completely 100% agree that is what they should do. I don’t have anything against Airbnbs, but I don’t think they should be in a residential area like this,” she said. “It’s noisy and they leave trash everywhere and it just makes the neighborhood not look good.”

The house with the highest number of complaints on the Dallas list is in the Lakewood area. That property recorded eight complaints in 2020 and 2021.

It looks small from the front, but the VRBO listing calls it “Your Very Own Private Dallas Resort” renting for $482 a night. It has a three-story villa and swimming pool in the back and room for 16 guests with four bedrooms, nine beds and three bathrooms. Photos show it has two kitchens and multiple living areas.

A neighbor said the owner has threatened neighbors with lawsuits for complaining. The neighbor shared video of guests screaming from a balcony and of heavy traffic on the street one night from a large gathering at the house.

The homeowner is Dallas Attorney Amy E. Davis. She says the problem is the neighbors, not the property. She says activist neighbors on the street oppose short-term rentals.

“That doesn’t give them the right to interfere with property owners' use of the property or intimidate guests who are staying at the house. That’s exactly what has happened here. I have worked as hard as you can work to be a good neighbor,” Davis said.

Despite the listing that remained online this week, Davis said the house is no longer a short-term rental.

But she said she does own Dallas property being used for short-term rental and said she opposes any new regulation.

Harrill says she could live with changes.

“I think there need to be tighter regulations or stipulations, but not outlaw it,” Harrell said.

The options are still being reviewed and could be decided by the Dallas City Council as soon as September.