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Short-term rentals (typically Airbnb, VRBO (Vacation Rental by Owner), and HomeToGo) are becoming a popular way for folks to stay on vacations and short business trips or for temporary relocation when moving to a new community. The same is true in Eugene with many folks supplementing income by renting out a spare room or two or even entire homes to guests. Short-term rentals also supplement the capacity of hotels and motels especially during large events such as University sports events and may be a crucial source of beds for over 50,000 participants, media and visitors during the 2022 World Track and Field Championships.
It is estimated that there are more than 1000 active short-term rentals in our community. At the time of this program, providers were currently required to pay 4.5% transient room tax for their guests to the City but unlike in most Oregon Cities there were few other requirements to operate short-term rentals. Some individuals have raised concerns that some hosts are inconsiderate neighbors, generating noise and parking problems for those who live near them. Others have raised concerns that short-term rentals remove capacity from the long-term rental market, a resource already facing severe capacity issues.
Responding to these concerns, the Eugene City Council called for formation of an ad-hoc committee to review the issue and make recommendations for changes in City Policy. That committee was composed of owner-occupied and non-owner-occupied short term rental operators, housing advocates, impacted neighbors and special interest groups.
While the committee was meeting, we brought four knowledgeable individuals with different perspectives to discuss their experience and knowledge of the subject of short-term rentals in our community. The committee’s resulting report and City Council’s actions are provided here.
Speakers
Title: Owner, Airbnb rental
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Bruce Searl and his wife have been operating a very successful Airbnb for 4 ½ years as an important part of their family income. Bruce is also involved in music production and portrait photography. He will speak to his experiences operating his Airbnb.
Title: Realtor, owner of rentals
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Kathryn Dunn is a realtor and member of the Eugene Short-Term Rentals Association. She has been a real estate investor for past 20 years and owns many long-term rentals as well as two short-term rentals. She will describe the general market and benefits of short term rentals in our community.
Title: Associate Professor in Planning, Public Policy & Management
Organization: University of Oregon
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Dr Rebecca Lewis is Associate Professor in Planning, Public Policy and Management at the University of Oregon Her student, Sadie Dinatale, published Assessing and responding to short-term rentals in Oregon: Enabling the benefits of the sharing economy. Dr. Lewis will summarize what is known about the short-term rental market in Eugene and throughout Oregon.
Title: Neighbor, Airbnb rental
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Jo Jo Jensen a profession voice talent who records from her studio in the Laurel Hill Valley. She has been dealing with issues created by an adjacent Airbnb for over seven years, most recently having several Eugene police officers responding to behaviors during a weekend party a few weeks ago.
