With the increase in short-term rentals in areas of our county, many have experienced some of the secondary impacts. Trash left outside, cars blocking the driveway, late-night music – it’s all a nuisance and it’s also a code enforcement violation.
Those who know of short-term rentals creating a nuisance or operating illegally can call the new complaint line toll-free at 1-800-205-9417. This replaces the County’s prior hotline and comes with new and improved tools.
San Bernardino County has integrated its short-term rental complaint system with a system that tracks unpermitted short-term rentals in the unincorporated areas. This gives the County an edge in addressing complaints quickly and effectively while also cracking down on illegal rentals.
San Bernardino County Code Enforcement opened the 24-hour-a-day, 7-day-a-week-hotline with the help of Deckard Technologies. The vendor is also providing the County with a new software application, Rentalscape, which identifies unpermitted short-term rental properties in the unincorporated areas of the county allows Code Enforcement to quickly identify unpermitted short-term rentals and to track complaints against all short-term rentals.
The new hotline and the Rentalscape software will integrate and work together to register complaints from the public, leading to more efficient enforcement of unpermitted short-term rental operators.
San Bernardino County strives to ensure that short-term rentals are licensed and operated in strict accordance with County ordinances so that they aren’t a nuisance to county residents. We want to make sure San Bernardino County is always a great place to live as well as a great place to visit.
“We want short-term rental operators to be successful with their operations but we also want our neighborhoods to be safe and clean,” said Curt Hagman, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors. “We believe this new software and hotline will offer better customer services for these types of complaints.”
I am 20yr resident up in LAKE ARROWHEAD .. 67yo senior — moved here for the PEACE and BEAUTY … STR can be alright …. just need NICE intelligent renters —- NOT YOUNG KIDS who PARTY …. these kids could BURN DOWN THE MOUNTAIN costing MILIONS — destroying lives …… therefore I humbly suggest that the COUNTY pass a law requiring all agent/broker property managers pass a simple TEST — and they MUST REQUIRE ALL RENTERS to familiarize themselves with some simple MOUNTAIN RULES …. regarding — 1-driving on the hwy 18 -2- parking -3- smoking/fires etc…. -4- loud music after 10pm -5- snow sleding areas -6- GARBAGE removal -7- Forest areas -8- Village stuff -9- etc etc etc ….. set up an ” EDICATE RULES” to follow ………………….. this would alleviate 95% of all your 800 calls / complaints — reduce YOUR WORKLOAD — the County Problems …. less $$$$ to operate your STR programs … and make the mountain MORE FUN and ENJOYABLE for allllllllllllllllll …… I will HELP YOU design this program …. pro-active for renters – prop owners – county staff – Sheriff Dept – etc etc …. win win win win ————– Captain Dave -retired pls10@hotmail.com 909 336 2232 landline – namaste’ -be well 😉
The State of California has formally, and lawfully, classified an individual STR as a Hotel and therefore are illegal in any California residential neighborhood, PERIOD. Additionaly the tax revenue money lost from the Calif tax breaks afforded to these illegal businesses far exceeds any intake that the state can generate from the many fraudulant STR operators who do not comply with their profit tax burdens. Legally zoned Hotels will once again flourish and be profitable and pay their fair share of taxes to the counties and state once the STR nusiances are prohibeted from operating in residential neighborhoods. Good Tax paying citizens struggling to raise a family and shelter them from dangerous, boisterous, and physically threatening STR renters have had their rights to live in a peaceful, respectful family neighborhood violated for too long.
Clustering and density of STR in Joshua Tree has destroyed, and is destroying the peace, calm, quiet, dark skies, animal life – all the things that make Joshua Tree special. We have 5 house surrounding us now, and almost every weekend we have to call and make a complaint – noise, trash, loud music, lights, even fireworks that have almost caused fires!!!. This is ridiculous. Rude and noisy people, and owners who don’t even live here, never have to deal with the problems. AirBnB, VACASA, VRBO – all are predatory and don’t care about real neighborhood and real residents. The County should put a moratorium on new STR permits. How is it legal to have up to 38% of the homes in JT as STRs – these are run as BUSINESSES? Insanity. Our community is being ruined by real -estate investors and out-of-towners who have no respect for nature or local residents.
Big Bear Valley here. I like reading “new tools” because this system last summer didn’t quite cut it. A little tough talking to people in Utah about what’s happening here and expecting them to care. Hopefully that’s been addressed. I think I was around 0 for 8 on situations being rectified via the County.
Bottom line? The Country cares about revenue. If neighborhoods need to be destroyed in the process…whatever. From Arrowhead heading east we’re just an opportunity for money. I’m sure the powers that be don’t come up here but I wish they would. Take a spin around and see how many “Help Wanted” signs there are. But no employees to fill them. I wonder what will happen when the businesses start closing en masse? Many already are. I guess that’s just the local business owners problem. As long as the County gets its cut of money moving down the hill that’s just how it goes.
Over the past couple of weeks I’ve received SIX notices informing me of incoming STR’s in my neighborhood. SIX.
Man. I’d just LOVE to know where some of the Council members live. I’d like to set up outside their house, get wasted, blast music and destroy their yard. And then when they complain they’d get no response. I wonder if things would change then?
….LKA major ruin with all the STRs that are receiving “permits” at an increasing pace. Sure you can call SB County and complain about noise, trash and parking …. Doesn’t seem to do any good. Next weekend, new renters and the same problems start again. LKA community is ruined–unless you are the STR’s property owner. Then you can count your gold coins as you rake it in.
If I wanted to open up a cafe, garage, junk yard, etc., in my residential neighborhood, the answer would be “no.” But, the County allows these commercial AirB&Bs in residential neighborhoods, which are clearly a business venture. My guess is this is allowed for the revenue the County receives, without any concern for the impact on the community or permanent residents. Workers can’t find homes, and once peaceful residential neighborhoods (Yes, people actually live here full time!) have been turned into giant motel complexes. Furthermore, as far as I know, none of these ventures are handicapped accessible, a condition that motels and hotels have to provide. Also, many of the streets in my area (Big Bear City) are not capable of handling the increased traffic and congestion, especially during winter conditions. For as many of the ventures that are County approved, there are just as many that operate under the table.
What to do? Calls to Supervisor Rowe’s office are never returned, and clearly she could care less. But, those of us who live here have the power to vote her out, and replace her with someone who represents their constituents. This needs to be done next election, and this insanity put to an end.
This new system seems focused on identifying illegal rentals – which isn’t the same as nuisance rentals. The rental property next door to me in Big Bear City is legal, but I’m frequently needing to call to report noise complaints. They should just be shut down. If you allow 15 people to rent a place together for a vacation, of course they are going to be noisy. But that’s not fair to tax paying home owners who are constantly paying the price, which the short-term rental owners rake in the profits. Maybe they should be forced to distribute their rental fees to the neighbors for every verified complaint!
I’ve been a resident of the Running Springs area for over 30 years. It has been nothing short of depressing watch all of the neighbors on my street move away over time and get slowly replaced by more and more STRs and Airbnb properties, far too many of which are not holding their tennants accountable for trash and noise.
My wife and I ended up volunteering for litter pickup around our area because the influx of weekenders this trend has caused has completely TRASHED the mountain. Additionally, we’d like to move closer to our jobs in Big Bear, but even if the prices were made more affordable, there’s nothing left but STRs to choose from. I want to LIVE here in the community I love, but I and many others are being pushed out.
As a STR owner, we try very hard to respect our neighbors and neighborhood. We consistently police our guests. We have cameras, noise decibel meters, include parking restrictions, and paid clean-up. We hire locally, impact the economy, offer business opportunities to trade skill workers, and spend locally.
The concept of STR allow all walks of life to experience something that only a few can. There has always been tourists in destination towns. In all of California, there are similar stories people being priced out, or job shortages. STR are not the culprit. Many of the issues surrounding Californians have been due to long term policies and voters.
Just like all matters, there are good seeds and there are bad seeds. There are good STR owners and bad STR owners. Just like there are bad homeowners and good homeowners.
Our STR doesn’t nearly rent every day of the month. Only on the weekends. Sometimes not at all. The days it goes unrented, it allows neighbors peace and quiet that normally wouldn’t be offered by a long-term renter. Long-term tenants have more rights and may become more of a nuisance.
In conclusion, STR owners can be great for the community if they are respectful and professional. Some can be bad, and those need to be monitored. All of us Californians are experiencing the same issues regarding housing and labor. STR vs LTR can be more easily dealt with in regards to noise complaints, trash, parking. LTR can be more of a nuisance and more difficult to enforce rules.
What an ABSOLUTE crock!!!!!
Just because there are a “few” of you STR owners that try hard to police their tenants, and actually CARE about the community they own in, doesn’t mean that the influx of STR properties into our community is not bad… It is EXTREMELY bad… You know it, and your post above just shows that you are trying to “sell” all of us on it. How often do we all play that card? “Oh, I am not THAT person! Oh, I do it the RIGHT way! Oh, I would NEVER do that to my community!” You lie, just like all other STR owners… You are the scum of the earth…
I am usually a capitalist, right-leaning man… but short-term rentals have got to be banned in San Bernardino County. They are massively contributing to the worst housing crisis in history; they are also responsible for an estimated 33% rise in the price of rentals (per Harvard) over the past 10 years.
Currently there are thousands of people in San Bernardino County looking for homes, but at any given time, only a dozen rentals listed. When you look up short-term rentals, however, in the exact same areas, you’ll find hundreds… Every short-term rental in San Bernardino County is a displaced family.
If investors are unwilling to make the moral decisions, and would rather displace and destroy communities, I’m sorry, but that’s the kind of situation where a governmental body needs to step in.