• We currently have 58 active short term rentals (STRs) in Nevada City limits.
• Many are whole house short term rentals with no neighbor in residence.
• The whole house STRs are negatively affecting our long term housing and affordable housing supply and neighborhood quality of life.
• The City’s draft short term rental ordinance does not yet have an effective method for limiting the number of short term rentals overall and still allows whole house short term rentals at current rates indefinitely.

We propose the following key principles in the new STR ordinance:

1.   We support elimination of whole house short term rentals in the city’s residential area by grandfathering in existing this type in residential zones for 5 years.

After that none of this type of short term rental will be permitted in residential zones. (OK in commercial zones.)

Note: There are other ways to phase out whole house short term rentals or to more substantially reduce the number suggested by the draft ordinance.  We ask the City to explore the whole house issue in more detail with the goal of at least ensuring a substantial decrease on whole house STRs as soon as possible.  Their numbers have grown substantially including just in the past few years.  This is the key issue and should be addressed before the discussion of detailed operational regulations which will not solve the whole house quantity issue.

Background: Many California cities have similarly banned  non hosted short term rentals and/or hosted short term rentals in residential zones including: Calistoga, Cloverdale, Healdsburg, Sausalito, Tiburon, Sonoma, Anaheim, Carmel, Belvedere, Danville, Del Mar, Hermosa Beach, Huntington Beach, Larkspur, Manhattan Beach, Ojai, Rancho Palos Verdes, Redondo Beach, San Juan Capistrano, West Hollywood, Buellton, Costa Mesa, Laguna Beach, Newport Beach, San Clemente, Santa Barbara, Santa Monica.

2.   We support with a limit, continuance of hosted short term bedroom rentals where the owner lives in the residence and a cap at existing levels.