UPDATED: Fritz Wants to Open More Apartments, Condos for Short-Term Rentals

• illustration by ryan alexander-tanner

Ahead of city hall’s first major hearing this afternoon on Mayor Charlie Hales’ expansion of short-term rentals to apartments and condos, Commissioner Amanda Fritz is pitching a major change in suggested rules first reported by the Mercury last month.

That hearing starts at 2 pm. Once it starts, the Mercury has learned, Fritz will publicly float an amendment meant to lift a carefully negotiated cap on how many units in a given apartment or condo building would be allowed for rent.

Currently, the draft rules would allow no more than 10 percent of building’s units to be offered up on Airbnb-style listings sites. Fritz says she’d rather see the number lifted to 25 percent—more than doubling the allowed pool of units. That could be a tough sell. The cap was put in place—and left at 10 percent—for two major reasons: (1) it allows building owners to avoid strict and costly building code rules for hotels and motels that would kick in if most of a building suddenly went up for short-term rent. And (2) the current cap has soothed some concerns among housing advocates that affordable long-term rental units might disappear, in the midst of a housing crisis, if landlords had a way to make to more money on the short-term market.

I asked Fritz about her rationale for pitching the change. She sent back a lengthy reply arguing that 10 percent is “overly restrictive” in terms of fairness, while also making the point that other restrictions on rental units—including a limit on how long a unit can be on the short-term market.

Tenants must be residents for 270 days per year, leaving only 90 days for renting out a one bedroom or studio apartment. So there is a built in limitation that is unlike Single Family residences which are more likely to have more than one bedroom. If this mechanism of making ends meet is good for Portland’s homeowners, folks who can only afford to rent should also have access to the opportunity, if their landlord agrees. 10% is overly restrictive given these factors.

Update 2:16 PM: Fritz has shared a more detailed rationale (pdf) for her amendment, which you can download here or read after the jump.///

It’s unclear how other offices in city hall will take that suggestion. The cap took some pushing, mostly by Commissioner Nick Fish’s office. It’s possible it may be enough, at the end of the process, that some kind of cap, no matter the size, is still in place.

Update 2:01 PM: The hearing’s about to start, and I’ve heard informally from two other offices that there likely won’t be any objections to what Fritz has floated.///

Fish’s office, sources says, will be proposing some technical amendments requiring landlords or property owners to certify that units have smoke and carbon dioxide detectors, not tenants.

Also unknown? Whether anyone will float an amendment pushing for stricter enforcement. As we reported several weeks ago, Hales’ office is sticking with a complaint-driven approach to renters who don’t follow the rules, including seeking city permits. Hales, on OPB’s Think Out Loud this afternoon, was defiant when asked if tighter enforcement might be in the offing.

“I don’t think it’s a problem. Because people can complain,” he said on the radio. “We’re not being any more Big Brotherish with these zoning code regulations than others. So far, so good.”