There are thousands of listings for short-term rentals in the Valley for the Super Bowl. Everything from a Scottsdale condo for $300 a night to a four-bedroom house that’s $14,000 for the week.
But what some of these property owners might not realize is in some parts of the Valley, short-term rentals are actually illegal.
Didn’t know that? Well, neither did Tony, a Phoenix resident who asked us not to use his last name after learning that within Phoenix city limits, you’re not allowed to rent out a house for less than 30 days. The same goes for houses in Scottsdale.
Tony said he listed his home on Airbnb about eight weeks ago. And he said others in his neighborhood have properties listed as well. In fact, when you look on those websites, you can easily find vacation rentals in Phoenix and Scottsdale. Patrick Ravenstein is Phoenix’s Code Compliance Manager and said the city is aware of the listings.
“I see them listed a lot on Craigslist and the different realty sites and it’s against the law, but a lot of people aren’t aware of it," he said.
Ravenstein said Phoenix only addresses the issue on a complaint basis. If the neighbors complain, the city will come out to the home. But he said officials are not actively looking for these property owners.
To the west, where the big game will actually be played, homeowners are in the clear. Kind of.
They have to have a business license, which costs $70. And again, people listing their homes may be unaware of this.
“We didn’t do any public outreach per se, just because this really has not been a community issue for us out here," said Glendale’s Planning Director, Jon Froke.
As for Tony, this isn’t something he’ll be turning into a part-time job. It’s his first time renting out his home and he said he’s only doing it for the Super Bowl.
“The way I look at it, if I don’t get at least $10,000 it’s not going to be worth the trouble," he said.
The thing is, we still don’t know who’s playing in the Super Bowl. That’ll be decided by the Conference Championships this weekend. And fans going to the game will need somewhere to stay. Whether that’s in someone else’s home, we’ll see.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been modifed to reflect the correct spelling of Jon Froke.
Updated 2/4/2015 at 9:59 a.m.
