With the return of the Belmont Stakes to Saratoga Race Course and a suite of performances at Saratoga Performing Arts Center, this summer is shaping up to be one of the busiest ever for Saratoga Springs. The city is also launching a short-term rental registry, though it’ll be some time before the program is in full swing.
Owners of short-term rentals in the Spa City have been on notice for more than a year now – Democratic Accounts Commissioner Dillon Moran has long floated the idea of reining in the growing rental market.
Late last year, the city council approved Moran’s legislation, and now he says we’re just a few weeks away from an online registration portal going live.
“We basically have one last little bit to sort out from a technology and training standpoint, and our anticipated launch is probably within the next three weeks. So, a week before the beginning of June, or maybe the first week of June, each person that we've identified within the market is going to get a letter from us indicating exactly what we need you to do,” said Moran.
Moran says the letter will be fairly straight-forward, with information on the city’s registration portal, how to register properties, and costs associated with the program.
“We are not going to be barking at people about this. We've provided for a 90-day period. We know it's going to be probably the busiest summer in the history of this city. We want folks to focus on the things that they need to focus on to either have a great time themselves or to ensure that their guests have a great time while experiencing Saratoga Springs. The reality is is over that 90 days, we hope to gain a high degree of compliance, and come the fall, we'll look to close that loop on the rest of the market,” said Moran.
Moran says the city’s STR registration vendor, Granicus, estimates there are around 1,200 units within the city, with about 90% identified so far.
The regulations prohibit residences from being leased on a short-term basis for more than 150 days in a year and require an emergency contact be within 50 miles of the rental property.
The legislation also establishes a 24/7 complaint hotline, and all properties will be subject to a new fire inspection.
“As long as you get registered, we will schedule you. It's going to be a rolling thing. There is, there's, there's a testament within the application process that says, hey, you know, I have my smoke detectors. I have the five items that we require everybody to have, and off you go. Again, we're not looking to jam anyone up. We're not looking to kind of keep people from doing, you know, this rental activity that they're doing. But we need to get our arms around it,” said Moran.
Owner-occupied and non-owner-occupied was the original terminology used in early drafts of the city’s STR legislation. After a series of public comment sessions, Moran shifted to primary and non-primary residences.
“So if you live in the city of Saratoga Springs and are renting out your house, as is our legacy, it is your primary residence where you file your taxes from. It's where you live. But because there is a difference between someone renting out their home and the social contract that exists within that ownership and within their membership of our community, in that neighborhood, we believe that is a more benign situation than someone who doesn't live here or owns multiple properties. They potentially have the – they have the potential to be a bigger burden on the system and on the process, and as such, we do have different registration fees,” said Moran.
Annual registration fees for primary residences are set at $100 while non-primary residences are set at $750 per property.
