Vacation rental laws in Philadelphia

[TJ Tooly]

My wife and I are unable to sell our house for what we want to sell it for, and are considering renting it out and moving elsewhere anyway. After spending a week recently out-of-state at a home we found on one of the big vacation rental sites, I came up with the idea of renting out our current home as a vacation rental. I am not asking if it is a good idea or not, or if it will even work (my wife thinks my idea is stupid, and nobody will rent it) or what my neighbors might think knowing a different group of people will be hanging about every weekend. I just want to know what the laws are in this fine city for short term rentals. Is it legal? And how what steps would I need to go about it as opposed to being a typical landlord (one year leases at a time). Thanks. It is on a completely residential block (as opposed to a home on South Street).

[seand]

Good luck.

I once looked at one of those house swapping services and I found very little European interest in Philadelphia. Sure Philly is a must-see stop on an East Coast tour, but its not someplace folks want to set up in as a vacation rental from what I saw. Maybe your luck will be different.

[tsarstruck]

Probably illegal, although not enforced. And unless your place is in a good Center City location, or in a handful of hot neighborhoods (East Passyunk, Northern Liberties, University City), it's also a stupid idea.

I'd go AirBNB if you go that route. Remember that you'll have to deal with all the hassle, and that some months will be a whole lot better than others.

All in all, your wife is probably right.

[Tartan69]

Why would it be illegal? Obviously you'd need to register with the city as a landlord and pay the Business Privilege Tax. But why wouldn't it classify as any other rental property where the leases are just short-term ones?

Whether it is a good idea or not was not what the OP was asking.

[phillydeveloper]

Completely legal! And a great idea. We do it for many of our properties. Craigslist is a great resource as well

[phillydeveloper]

Also, try listing your space on airbnb.com as we have had much success with short term vacation rentals on that site

[Tartan69]

Also, try listing your space on airbnb.com as we have had much success with short term vacation rentals on that site

Homeaway.com is another solid option (although I only have personal experience with it via rentals in Europe)

[JakeL]

Wouldn't a short-term rental apartment fall under the hotel category, thus adding an 8.5% tax to the rental price? Or does the hotel category only apply to olaces that rent rooms, rather than a house?

[ArcticSplash]

I would try to talk to someone at L&I to get the skinny on it.

It's very difficult to argue that a single family R-10 zoned rowhome is a "hotel" just because there's a tenant change going on. If you have your vacationers sign a week-to-week lease contract, or a 1 month rental contract, whatever, then you should be fine as long as your tenants are under a rental covenant.

If you want a full legal rundown of this, then I would seriously consider asking if the Klehr law firm will do some research for you (obviously you will have to pay them for them hours for the consultation). Klehr are the zoning attorneys to the stars in this town, so I would imagine in any case if they green-light what you're doing, you won't have much difficulty if you upset the civic association when your neighbors don't care for the idea of new tenants every 3-5 weeks moving in and out of the house and start whining.


By the way, you will be paying business privilege taxes on your rental AND you'll need to go to L&I to get a Housing License.

[Sharkfood]

I kind of recall that the city does not permit leases shorter in duration than 30 days. If it's rented for periods of less than 30 days, it's not a residential use; it's a hotel use and has different zoning and construction requirements.