KMUW | By Celia Hack
Short-term rentals that have not acquired a license or taken steps to get one could face criminal charges, city officials say.
At least one-quarter of short-term rentals in Wichita have yet to comply with new licensing regulations by the city, which went into effect last month.
It could result in dozens of criminal charges being filed against non-compliant property owners, city officials say.
The city passed new regulations last year for short-term rentals like AirBnBs and VRBOs, as the businesses grew more common throughout Wichita. The new code was meant to formalize the short-term rental market in Wichita because the city’s former zoning code technically made it illegal to rent out most residential properties for less than seven days.
The new codes required short-term rentals to get licensed by the end of September. To do so, most property owners have to first change their property’s zoning code, a step neighbors can protest.
But 126 of the approximately 470 short-term rental listings in Wichita don’t have a license or haven’t started the process to acquire one, city officials shared last week.
In notices sent out in late September and early October, the city told the owners of the unlicensed rentals that they have 30 days to start the process of getting a license.
“They have to be in compliance or in process by that deadline, otherwise criminal charges will be filed against them,” said J.R. Cox, the zoning administrator for the city.
The city’s new short-term rental code threatens a fine of up to $500 per day for operating without a license.
About 210 other short-term rentals have gotten licensed or applied for one, Cox said.
And the city is aware of about 100 short-term rental listings online but doesn’t have the corresponding street addresses. Without an address, Wichita can’t send notices or contact a property owner.
Jason Kraus lives near an AirBnb in Crown Heights where a shooting occurred in 2021. He wants the city to move more quickly to enforce the consequences and fines that unlicensed short-term rentals could face.
The short-term rental near his house appears to still be operating, he said, though it hasn’t received a license from the city. Its online listing shows the house is booked through parts of October.
Kraus asked why the city can’t treat unlicensed short-term rentals like it might an unlicensed or uninsured motorist at a traffic stop.
“It’s really towards that point of almost a law enforcement, sort of, ticket item,” Kraus said. “And it should be, in my opinion, that easy to ticket: You are in violation. Here is your ticket.”
One reason is because the city’s short-term rental code gives property owners time to get into compliance.
“The code is written so that they have to have a 30-day window in which to rectify the problem,” Cox said.
City Council member Brandon Johnson said he thinks enforcement is going well so far, partially because property owners have been informed about the new rules. In the last six months, the city sent three letters to short-term rental property owners alerting them to the rule change.
“People have received three letters and now they’re in violation,” Johnson said. “You know, you had six or so months to respond to those letters, and at this point you knew what was coming.”
This article was republished here with the permission of: KMUW