Last April, my colleague Anthony Guardino blogged about the Town of Southold’s local law banning “transient rental properties”, which Southold defined as dwellings that are rented out for less than fourteen nights at a time.   Now the Town of Huntington, New York is considering enacting a similar local law.

Huntington’s Proposed Ban

house for rent shutterstock_84704473The Town of Huntington proposes to ban short-term rentals a/k/a “transient rental property” of less than 30 days. The proposal also would prohibit the issuance of rental permits to transient rental properties.    If you are interested in commenting on this proposal, you should attend the public hearing, which is scheduled for Tuesday evening, January 10, 2017 at 7:00 p.m. in Town Hall, located at 100 Main Street in Huntington.

According to the sponsors of the proposal, council members Mark Cuthbertson and Tracey Edwards, complaints have been received over the past year from neighbors of residences who rent out rooms on a short-term basis, raising quality of life issues. The rooms are often advertised on Airbnb, Home Away and VRBO websites. Town rental permits typically are not obtained for these units, meaning they are not certified as meeting Town Code requirements. The Town permits bed-and-breakfast facilities, (referred to as Bed-and-Breakfast Homestays in the Town Code), but these facilities require approval from the Town Board to lawfully operate.

Town of Islip’s Short-Term Rental Law

The Town of Islip enacted a local law on December 15, 2015 concerning transient rental property.  Under the Islip Town Code, a dwelling unit is presumed to be transient rental property if it is advertised on short-term rental websites and is offered for less than fourteen nights. Interestingly, and not surprisingly, the definition excludes dwelling units located on Fire Island. (Islip Town Code § 68-649).  Islip requires a rental occupancy permit to lawfully rent out a dwelling unit and prohibits a rental occupancy permit being granted to transient rental property. (Islip Town Code § 68-650).

Village of Great Neck Estates Short-Term Rental Law

The Village of Great Neck Estates enacted a local law on October 10, 2016 that prohibits transient dwelling units in all zoning districts unless a transient dwelling unit permit is obtained from the Village.  Such permits only can be issued twice a year for any particular dwelling unit, must specify the proposed occupant on the application and are not transferrable to other occupants. (Village of Great Neck Estates Code § 230-22).  A transient dwelling unit covers a rental that lasts less than eight consecutive days, and a unit that is advertised on short-term rental websites is presumed to be a transient dwelling unit.

Stay tuned for an update after Tuesday’s public hearing.