Beverly Hills Moves Toward Banning Short-Term Rentals

Beverly Hills could become the latest California city to ban short-term rentals.

The City Council of the Los Angeles-area enclave voted 4-1 to proceed with new regulations that would ban single-family properties and multifamily residents within city limits from being leased for fewer than 12 consecutive months, the Beverly Hills Courier and Beverly Press reported. Vice Mayor John Mirisch was the only council member to dissent at the July 1 vote.

By restricting short-term rentals, including those offered via platforms like Airbnb and Vrbo, officials hope to cut down on loud parties and encourage longer-term residents to move into the city as well as free up housing that has otherwise been kept from the housing supply.

“It’s really important that we create the stock of availability for people to either get into a home or get into an apartment, and I really see that as part of this,” Council member Lester Friedman said, per the Courier. “The state has come down really hard on cities because of lack of availability of rental units, and I really see this as part of that puzzle in making living spaces available.”

In January, the City Council voted for a temporary ban on short-term rentals in the wake of the Los Angeles wildfires. The original ordinance presented to the council proposed that single-family homes be barred from being leased for less than 12 months, while multifamily units would be stopped from being leased for less than six months.

“Obviously we want to be able to support housing,” Mayor Sharona Nazarian said, according to the Beverly Press. “With the data that was shared with us, I’m fine with a one-year increase for multifamily as well as single family.”

Council member Craig Corman, who sat on the Planning Commission when the original short-term stay ordinance was passed, put it more bluntly.

“We were aware of the potential downsides of Airbnbs in the city, but we thought we’d give it a chance,” he said. “Obviously, we were wrong.”

The ordinance revision came after the council heard testimony from Deborah Blum, who owns a 1913 American Craftsman-style home in the city and rents it out in short-term spurts to maintain the property.

“For the past two decades, we have relied on income from the short-term rental of our guest house to fund our preservation efforts. All these rentals have occurred without any disturbance, while we have resided in the main house,” Blum said. “Please consider adding an historic caretaker exemption to the new ordinance. We propose that landmark properties be permitted to rent guest houses for under 30 days provided the owners maintain primary residence and direct oversight.”

After the July 1 hearing, the city council directed staff to draft a 12-month prohibition across the board with an exemption for buildings designated as historic landmarks. The new ordinance will come before the council for a hearing July 15. There are 19 historic landmark residences within Beverly Hills, with approximately five of those having accessory dwelling units that could be rented.

In Greater Los Angeles, cities like West Hollywood, Santa Monica, Garden Grove and Irvine have already imposed restrictions or outright bans on short-term rentals.

— Chris Malone Méndez