You should know what it means for you and for your landlord when you do short-term rentals (rentals for less than 30 days). Airbnb has reduced vacant rental housing stock by as much as 43 percent making homes even less affordable. In addition, Ron Conway, an Airbnb investor, has been funding politicians and legislation against rent-control. In addition to requiring the landlord’s permission, there are requirements for being a host for a short-term rental as listed on the Office of Short-Term Rentals’ website. Tenant lawyers have reported a rash of eviction notices related to short-term rentals done without the landlord’s permission, so understand the risks.

Owners as Hosts

• Property owners can only list their primary residences. This means they cannot run a hotel out of any extra unit in your building that they do not live in.
• Most likely, unscrupulous owners will have a relative or friend register units which the owner controls. If you suspect that your landlord or a landlord within 100 feet of your residence is running an unsanctioned hotel, please report it to the city. While there is no publicly available centralized list of all approved short-term rental hosts, you can visit sfplanning.org to look up a specific address, then choose the “Planning Apps” tab. A Short-Term Rental Certificate will be listed (at the bottom of the Planning Apps screen) if one is currently active on the property. Approved applications are visible, however pending and denied applications are not shown.

If you have evidence or suspicion that you or other tenants were forced out of a rental apartment so that the owner could turn it into a vacation rental, there may be a case for a Wrongful Eviction lawsuit. The displaced tenant should seek advice at the Tenants Union.

Enforcement

Tenants who do not obtain landlord permission are subject to eviction proceedings although there may be a chance to “cure” the offense. Violations can result in fines up to $1000 per day for the period of the unlawful rental. Any monetary award obtained by the city shall be used for enforcement of San Francisco Administrative Code Chapter 41A.

Once again, we must stress that not registering with the Office of Short-Term Rentals and following the official procedures is an extremely risky endeavor. Landlords, annoyed neighbors and homeowners associations are reporting illegal vacation rentals. The Office of Short-Term Rentals has been created to investigate vacation rentals.

Updated 12/21.