If you fire up your Airbnb or Vrbo apps, you’ll find all kinds properties available to rent for a few days in Prince George’s County. For homeowners, it’s a way to make a few extra dollars, and for visitors from out of town, it can be a way to book something more comfortable than a stale or costly hotel room.
But county leaders are concerned too many people who already live in the area are booking stays to host crazy parties.
Now, the county council has approved a measure that would require its Department of Permitting, Inspections and Enforcement (DPIE) to come up with a database of all the licensed, short-term rental properties. It would allow residents to know exactly where any short term rentals are operated in their neighborhood.
“I am not the only council member who has been contacted by people in a neighborhood who are really being disturbed by the activities that are going on in a handful of Airbnbs or Vrbos, through these short-term rentals,” said Council Chair Jolene Ivey.
She said most of the time, there aren’t any issues.
“But there are those that are really problems in the community, and you need all the information that you can get in order to shut down that kind of disturbing activity,” she said.
Now, if there’s a problem with a house, the database gives residents a chance to find out if it’s a rental.
“To get them to remove them from their platforms is a really powerful way to shut down that kind of activity,” Ivey said.
Public opposition to the bill was minimal, though resident DeWayne Jackson said he worried that creating a database would also create a target.
“Disseminating that information is dangerous to us as homeowners,” Jackson said. “It’s dangerous and it’s going to cause people to get hurt.”
The council did pass one amendment, which removed the name of the homeowner or host of the short term rental property from the public database, before passing it unanimously. The county executive’s office indicated it was supportive of the bill becoming law.
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