For owners of Short-Term Vacation Rentals that break rules and operate unlicensed in Morongo Basin’s unincorporated communities, stiffer fines and greater oversight is about to show up on their doorsteps. That’s the outcome of yesterday’s meeting of county supervisors in San Bernardino. But equally important as the issues supervisors addressed, are those they ignored. Reporter Mike Lipsitz explains…
The vast majority of vacation rental owners operate within the rules and contribute significantly to local employment and the economy. For them, the coming changes in penalties and enforcement will have no impact. But for those operating without permits and those whose guests generate excessive noise, litter, and other disturbances the ten-fold increase in fines and greater oversight aim to bring them into compliance. Enacted under an “urgency ordinance,” the changes can rapidly be put in place. What the county’s action fails to address is the serious and growing shortage of suitable housing for residence and workers searching for affordable long-term leases. The availability of such housing continues to shrink as owners convert those units to lucrative vacation rentals.
