I'm sure many of you are aware of the boon in short term rentals here (aka "AirBNB's) in Portland. Whether a basement apartment or a separate ADU - the law is as follows (in a nutshell):
- You can rent out up to 2 bedrooms at your primary residence on a short term basis for no more than 95 days a year (without you being on the premises).
- You must have a valid permit from the city in order to rent your rooms/ADU/etc. The permit involves an inspection and notification to neighbors - total cost is $175.
Why? There is currently a housing shortage in Portland - and this has caused both sales prices and rents to jump pretty darn high. When owners rent their investment properties on a short term basis - they can likely make a lot more money- but then we have another property unavailable for residents to rent on a monthly/annual basis.
The rules have been loosely enforced thus far. If you were caught disobeying the rules, you would have a grace period to become compliant. But starting March 31st, the grace period is gone and the fine starts at $1000/day. Holy Fine-a-roni!!
So if you're lucky enough to have space to rent - or even if you rent your home occasionally when you go on vacation - you should definitely start the permit process!