New short-term rental rules for Vail start today

Strict new rules for short-term rentals in Vail, Colorado, go into effect March 1. The new regulations establish several requirements for short-term vacation rental operators.

First of all, short-term rental hosts are required to get special new permits that must be renewed every year and are not transferrable to new owners. Formerly, operators were only required to get business licenses.

Another major new provision is that operators must name a contact person located within 60 minutes of the rental who is available to respond to complaints (from either neighbors or renters) around the clock. Representatives must respond to complaints within 60 minutes, or 30 minutes between 11 p.m. and 8 a.m.

Hosts must also provide a notarized affidavit affirming that they:

• Have safety features on the property, including fire extinguishers and smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
  
• Have notified duplex neighbors that they intend to rent their property out for short terms.
• Are aware of trash, parking, and noise regulations.
• Will include short-term license numbers in all print and online ads.
• Have contact numbers and emergency exit locations posted inside the property.
• Have designated a local agent to handle problems.

Enforcement is also tightening up for Vail short-term rentals. A formal complaint may be filed with the town if an issue is not resolved by the property’s local contact, and three or more formal, unresolved complaints related to the same property within a year can lead to the revocation of that property’s short-term rental permit. A revoked short-term rental license cannot be reinstated for two years, unless the property changes hands.

Vail short-term rental hosts are required to get sales tax licenses and collect 9.8 percent in combined sales and lodging taxes on short-term rental revenues from their guests. Operators must get one sales tax license for Vail, which collects the city sales tax, and another license for the state, which collects state, county, and marketing district lodging taxes.

Airbnb has agreements to collect lodging taxes on behalf of its hosts in some Colorado communities; however, it does not have such an agreement with Vail. That means short-term vacation rental hosts in Vail — whether they use Airbnb, VRBO, HomeAway, or another platform to book their rentals — are responsible for getting all sales tax licenses then collecting and remitting the correct amounts of taxes to each jurisdiction. Automated solutions such as MyLodgeTax can help short-term rental operators simplify and manage all their lodging taxes.