URGENT WARNING for hosts in the Upper Keys, KEY LARGO

[Barry-and0]

Monroe county is handing out very large fines for those listing short term rentals on airbnb for the upper keys.  Most areas in the upper keys do not allow renting for less than 28 days.  Monroe county has made it illegal to ADVERTISE rentals for less than 28 days, so even if you dont host, you will still be fined.  They are not giving any warnings.  This is being fought in court, but for now it is illegal and will result in fines of $6000 to $10,000.  It would be beneficial if Airbnb could send reminders to all their hosts in the upper keys, as this is becoming widespread.  The county code enforcement officials are merely copying the listings from Airbnb and fining everyone.  On a typical day at the hearings in Monroe County, they are collecting over $150,000 in fines.

[Kevin-And-Pat0]

They just crazy.They going to just hurt the businesses and local tax collections. Maybe even home sales. I saw the July 26th magistrate hearing they cited 39 more owners. Be advised, do not sign the stipulation agreement from Francie Boellard or any of them. They do not give you any discount. Go to the court hearing and state your case. For first time offenses i saw discounts of 33 to 90%.One man they reduced from $15,000 to $1500. But judge would not give this deal to any other owner there.

Code compliance will not tell you this and they get you to sign stipulation agreement with no discount. I was fined $10,000 plus $455 court costs

[Ana1288]

Hello fellow hosts. Has anyone else been affected in Key Largo? I just received notification for a hearing on my property next month. I was wondering how some of you handle this, what worked and what didn't. Also, is there anything we can do as a group to change the rules/code? Any advise or feedback would be greatly appreciated.

[Andres368]

Good evening Ana,

how did it go in your hearing? Did you have to provide any documents? We’re you fined? I hope all went well. 

[Nelson151]

Hi Ana, I just got a letter from Francie in the mail, yes i do advertise my home but i do not rent it short term. These people are just fining everyone until some attorney stands up and stops this highway robbery. How can you give such big fines to property owners that want to get a return on income. Whats happening now is that numerous people have been affected that do need the income to maintain the property and they are selling the properties causing a flood of listings. I would suppose the homeowners that actually live year round do not want the vacation rental but in the other hand they also dont care to lose equity since the market is being flooded with people that want out. Hopefully someday they will figure out that the keys is a place for vacationers, without them there is no money in the keys. 

[Maria3679]

Hi Ana, we were fined a year ago and have not rented our house since then for less than 28 days. I think it would be beneficial if all of those affected by this unite and start investigating the different options to resolve this totally unfair law. Maybe Airbnb can help us in communicating with all the hosts in the Upper Keys.

Maria

[Denielle2]

Hi Maria, do you get a lot of interest in your property for a 28 day rental?