Saratoga Springs is one step closer to short-term rental regulations following another public hearing on upcoming legislation.
Saratoga Springs residents packed city hall, attending Commissioner of Accounts Dillon Moran’s fifth public hearing on his legislation that would rein in the short-term rental market.
Saratoga Springs relies on the tourist boom that the summer horse racing season brings, nearly tripling the city’s population. Speaking with WAMC before the Feb. 20, hearing, Moran says he is focused on supporting homeowners who want to rent out during the summer, but wants to eliminate rental properties that are empty apart from the summer season.
“This first pass at the legislation is focused on an owner-occupied model. Meaning, if you’re a citizen of Saratoga and you want to rent out your house at some point in the year because we’re a desirable place to live, go for it,” explained Moran.
The legislation will have homeowners register their houses as rentable and require that only “owner-occupied” properties are used for short-term rentals, meaning the owners must live in the registered property at least 185 days a year.
As is, short term rentals are illegal in the city – Moran’s legislation is pre-empting coming state laws that will require municipalities to either run their own short-term rental registries or use the state-wide system.
Jo-Ann White, Vice President of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services, spoke in favor of some of the safety measures included in the legislation like requiring a local emergency contact and fire safety measures like smoke detectors and egress plans.
“We’re not talking about track rentals, folks. As a single mom, I rented my house for two weeks every year and it enables me to stay in it. That’s not what we’re talking about. We’re talking about un-hosted money machines that don’t belong in our residential neighborhoods. It’s affected my quality of life in a big way, thank you,” said White.
Jon Sterngass has lived in Saratoga Springs for 30 years and spoke to another issue Moran hopes the legislation will tackle: skyrocketing home prices.
“My kids can’t afford to live in Saratoga now. And you throw all the statistics you want at me, these are houses that would be sold to someone, to families now. And they are a lot of them. So I think that I would strongly support in favor of limiting or eliminating non-owner-occupied rentals. I strongly support people who live in their houses and want to make a little extra money,” said Sterngass.
The $1,000 registry fee for two years, and other associated costs like fire inspections and proper insurance, have drawn criticisms from those opposed to the legislation.
Carolena Cummings runs a website dedicated to filling track rentals during racing season and says the proposed fees could price-out some homeowners looking to rent over the summer.
“I’m not saying I’m against regulations or some sort of monitoring of short-term rentals, but $1,000 is way too much. And it’s unfair. And I work with several groups of homeowners. Owner-occupied properties, investment properties, I have single-mothers who rented out their home and were able to afford a larger home for her and her children and then continue to rent out the smaller property during track season. The new legislation is unfair and it needs to slow down, it’s going way too fast,” said Cummings.
Carl Frietag, an Airbnb host of 10 years, is hesitant to support the legislation, but wants to extend Moran’s timeline to prevent any unforeseen consequences.
“I just think that there’s so much overreach,” said Freitag. “The one thing I’m really happy about is you’re talking July 1st and Labor Day. Those are great days, I just think you’re one year too soon. I think it should all be put off until 2025. Gather data, prove your points and make sure we do this right.”
If passed, Moran’s legislation would go into effect July 1st, giving property owners 60 days to register.
