Need to Know

Airbnb Hosts: When can I start renting my STR rooms with the new pass-through system?

NEW UPDATE INCLUDED - EDITED 10/15/19

With the new City of Portland/Airbnb “pass-through” registration being announced, I’m getting a lot of questions about the timing of allowing that first guest into the home.

*The pass-through system is for renting 1-2 STR bedrooms only. All 3-5 bedroom rentals must continue to go through the Type-II Land Use Review process to become permitted.

“Airbnb has chosen the pass-through registration data sharing agreement option. Effective November 1, 2019, Airbnb will launch an online registration system requiring new hosts to share their data with the City of Portland and asking existing hosts to allow their data to be shared with the City. Hosts that do not consent to having their data shared will be removed from the Airbnb website by January 1, 2010.” - City of Portland Press Release https://strpermit.com/documents

Once a host has shared their data with Airbnb, the information will be put on a registry along with all other ASTR permits for the City of Portland.

“Application for a permit will display on the Registry with a status of “Application” and a renewal date of “TBD” until the permit has been fully issued. These applications are considered valid unless removed from the Registry. Once a permit has been issued, the listing will update to display a status of “Issued” and a renewal date.” - Office of Management & Finance Revenue Division https://www.portlandoregon.gov/revenue/article/415180

Whether you applied by filling out the ASTR application and submitted paperwork to the City, or you went through Airbnb’s online pass-through system, **you must wait until your address is recorded as “Issued” (for traditional paper applications and Airbnb pass-through) or “Recorded” (for Type-B ASTR’s) before renting out rooms to short-term guests. **EDIT 10/15/19 You now only need to be in compliance with Title 33 Planning and Zoning code rules regarding Accessory Short Term Rentals. If you have agreed to share your data with the City of Portland through Airbnb’s Pass-through system, and you are within the criteria for compliance, you can begin renting your 1-2 bedroom ASTR. If you are operating 3-5 bedrooms, you still need to go through the Bureau of Development Services to apply for your Type-II Land Use Review.

You can find your property on the STR registry here: https://www.portlandmaps.com/reports/index.cfm?action=short-term-rental

We will all have to wait and see how long it takes for new applications to be approved; that depends entirely on how quickly the City can look through each entry. In the last six months, paper applications have been taking from 12-16 weeks for approval, but yesterday a BDS clerk told me it should currently only take eight. As far as the new pass-through system goes, a memorandum from the Portland Revenue Division states, “The City is taking proactive steps to streamline and update the ASTR permit process. This includes changing the process for the required Bureau of Development Services verification of Type A Standards from an in-person inspection to a discretionary procedure and streamlining the application permit process for ASTR permits, business licenses, and Transient Lodging Tax registration to allow hosts to fill out one consolidated form via the Revenue Division to obtain these permits.”

As always, if you are thinking about becoming a short term rental host in the City of Portland, I would be happy to discuss any and all questions that you might have about obtaining either your Type-A or Type-B Accessory Short Term Rental Permit. I offer a free 20 minute call that can be booked here: https://strpermit.com/connect







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Portland Drafts Ordinance To Crackdown On Airbnb

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The legal battle between the City of Portland and Airbnb may finally be coming to a head. The following article written and published by OPB outlines what they are calling the “crackdown.”

“Portland’s mayor is planning to introduce an ordinance that would force online short-term rental companies like Airbnb to take down unpermitted rentals. The proposed crackdown in Portland follows a federal court ruling in March that dealt a legal blow to Airbnb’s long-held position that it is not responsible for policing unpermitted listings on its site. Portland’s revenue division has been trying to reach a voluntary agreement with the company for more than a year over unpermitted rentals. The city says Airbnb’s latest offer represented a step backward, so it is preparing to try a tougher tactic: an ordinance that goes after Airbnb’s profits.”

Type A Accessory Short Term Rental (1-2 bedrooms) in a Multi-Dwelling Structure (3 units or more)

The number of dwelling units in a multi-dwelling structure (3 or more units) that can have an accessory short-term rental is limited to 1 unit, or 25 percent of the total number of units in the structure, whichever is greater.

Unlike the accessory short term rental inspection requirements in 1&2 Dwelling Structures, BDS will not inspect bedrooms in multi-dwelling structures and triplexes. Multi-Dwelling structures and triplexes are already inspected under the Portland Fire & Rescue Safety Inspection program, which examines the safety features of common areas (e.g. condition and operation of exit doors, emergency lighting, exit signs, components of fire resistive construction, fire extinguishers, and records for fire alarm and fire protection systems). However, guest bedrooms must be equipped with interconnected smoke detectors and a carbon monoxide alarm. 

Here is the City information on STRs in multi-dwelling structures.