The proposed zoning ordinance to allow short-term rentals in Denver is immensely important for both owners of short-term rentals (STRs) in Denver and for their neighbors.
Rentals of homes for less than 30 days are not a new phenomenon but an area that has ballooned in popularity, thanks to technology companies that have made it easier for owners to connect with guests from around the world.
The popularity of STRs has helped to ease our strained hotel capacity for visitors; allowed long-term residents to weather job losses; increased business traffic for locally owned restaurants and shops, and helped to increase home values in the metro Denver area.
The proposed zoning ordinance seeks to clarify the rules for short-term rentals in order to promote their positive effects.
By renting our place out, my wife and I were able to log considerable travel within Colorado and around the world. We were renting our primary home, which is a small one bedroom in downtown, giving us the opportunity to live for a week in Boulder and another in a small cabin in Evergreen.
It also allowed us to travel to London and South Africa — trips we could barely afford without this opportunity.
Renting our place even allowed us to overcome three months of mandatory military training by giving us enough money to find a pet-friendly hotel near my training base and supplemented the difference in income from my civilian job. AirBnB has a direct impact on enabling me to volunteer for more duty with the Air National Guard.
My wife and I have been hosts on AirBnB for almost two years now. While we were both skeptical and cautious at first, we have found the positive effects of short-term rentals to be numerous.
The HOA board in my building reworded our covenants to limit short-term rentals for periods of less than 30 days. There was very little discussion or opportunity for opposition due to the lack of a clear model for home-sharing.
While we have ceased renting our property, we remain committed to being responsible hosts somewhere else. But we need this ordinance passed so we can have meaningful discussion on the topic with any future neighbors or HOA boards.
Beyond the issue of making this legal is the importance of “doing our part” for the community. Currently, STR hosts cannot pay the appropriate taxes for rentals even if they wanted to. Passing this ordinance would require hosts to pay the 10.75 percent lodgers tax.
During our active hosting months, we had doctors, CEOs, actors, house-hunting transplants and many others stay in our home. Most of them came to Denver for important conferences at the nearby convention center and spent significant amounts during their stay at local places we recommended, such as Falling Rock Tap House and Leela’s.
We built lasting relationships with many of our guests. Over time, we are more confident with the quality of guests supplied by AirBnB and the platform’s positive effect on our community.
My wife and I see the passing of this ordinance as an important part to building our communities and making Denver an even better city than it is today.
Robert Martin of Denver is an Airbnb host.
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