A chance to affect short term rental issues

[John G]

That is my understanding. Rental management companies find it quite frustrating that individual owners can get away with not paying bed tax if they choose to take the risk of getting caught.

and our BCC and TDC do nothing to try to remedy this?

 

[FactorFiction]

and our BCC and TDC do nothing to try to remedy this?

I know that the TDC would like to know, but I'm not sure what, if anything, can be done to require a private business to disclose who pays what in bed tax. For AirBNB and VRBO, etc., it would probably mean a manual search by looking up addresses with rental signs, finding owners, and then checking the clerk's office to see if they pay bed tax. That assumes that you can search the clerk's bed tax records. Sounds like a good fact finding mission. Maybe I'll look into it when I run out of things I have to get done!

 

[Bob Hudson]

They are exempt from Public Records requests per state statute.

 

[John G]

They are exempt from Public Records requests per state statute.

Well this just gets more and more interesting...

 

[John G]

South Walton citizens should demand that every rental house post a sign out front with its Name, emergency contact number and name of company responsible for receiving calls about property issues.

Then the neighbors can report them to the County / State if they know its a short term rental. Serious fines for not paying bed tax can be levied by the State.

But, this is Walton County where not much is enforced and I'm sure they don't care if hundreds of thousands of bed tax flies under the radar.

The real travesty is the protection from public records these rental properties enjoy...

 

[m1a1mg]

I had a former neighbor who conducted all of their rental transactions in Texas. Advertised and collected there. Seems they may have found a loophole.

 

[Sun Chaser]

I had a former neighbor who conducted all of their rental transactions in Texas. Advertised and collected there. Seems they may have found a loophole.

And their rental properties were located in SoWal?

 

[Sun Chaser]

Wait just a minute..... someone can have a vacation rental in SoWal (neighboring counties as well I presume), not collect a bed tax, and neither the county or the TDC can verify or enforce the property owner to collect? Or worse, the property owner can collect the tax and pocket it? Tell me this is incorrect please.

 

[Sun Chaser]

Well this just gets more and more interesting...

Interesting, indeed. I would love to hear where/when/how this data became exempt from public records.

 

[Sun Chaser]

Back to original topic: should local or state have control over vacation rentals? Geez, I am usually in favor of local control on everything, but given the corruption in Walton County as well as Tallahasse, I really don't know.