Two things were evident in an hours-long Quality of Life Committee meeting this week: the Houston City Council wants an ordinance governing short-term rentals that will protect neighborhoods from party houses. But without enforceable zoning codes, that may not be possible.
Houston isn’t unique in its plight to regulate Airbnbs and other rental units where guests stay for a weekend or up to 30 days. Cities across the United States have attempted to balance the much-needed revenue that comes from registration fees and hotel occupancy taxes with the complaints of noise and illegal activity in residential neighborhoods. Houston is unique, however, in that the City Council can’t define these rentals as hotels and zone them out of residential areas. Even if they were to do so, other large cities like Dallas have imposed such bans and been sued so the party houses continue to plague neighborhoods while the ordinances on the books remain unenforceable.
An ordinance discussed at last week’s Houston City Council meeting was again on the table for a vote Wednesday but postponed to April 16 for further review. Four council-proposed amendments were revised; one was withdrawn.
Every stakeholder has a different issue. Kathryn McNiel deals with a multifamily complex in her Museum District neighborhood that she says operates as a hotel. Sebastien Long of Lodgeur, who offers upscale apartments to business travelers and relatives of MD Anderson cancer patients, is concerned about the $275-per-unit registration fee taking him out of business. He also doesn’t like the requirement to publicly post the cell phone number of an all-hours emergency contact, which could be challenging for those who employ a staff to provide customer service.
Jason Ginsburg doesn’t want the former Houston Texans player who bought several lots in his neighborhood to turn them into party houses. And Howard Bookstaff, general counsel for the Houston Apartment Association, said he appreciated the council’s focus on crime, safety and nuisances but pointed out that multifamily properties are already required to register with the city. The proposed ordinance, he said, would require hosts to register again if they want to rent out one of their units on a short-term basis.
No one is arguing about the requirement for operators and employees to watch a training video on human and sex trafficking — but also no one thinks that will solve the party house problem.
The party house problem is a big one but it’s limited to particular areas with “bad actor” operators, city officials have said. Still, it’s difficult to restrict the bad guys while not punishing the good ones. The City Council has received complaints on 27 properties out of more than 8,500 short-term rentals. More than 700 short-term rental units are in apartment complexes or townhomes, At Large Council Member Sallie Alcorn said.
Alcorn has been at the forefront of the short-term rental debate along with District C Councilwoman Abbie Kamin and Quality of Life Committee Chair Julian Martinez. Alcorn said Tuesday she recently stayed in an Airbnb in another city.
“I got a book of rules that said I couldn’t even play music that could be heard outside or else the compliance officer was going to knock on my door,” she said. “I was like, wow, there’s a short-term rental compliance officer in this city? We don’t have anything like that.
“I know it’s a balance but we have to protect neighborhoods,” Alcorn added. “It’s a real balance because we know there are a lot of responsible owners out there doing the right thing. We don’t want to hurt you … But I won’t bend on a problem property … that has consistent problems that have been adjudicated. There’s something wrong with the owner if this is happening at your property.”
The matter has been discussed in earnest by the Houston City Council since mid-2024, and elected officials have received extensive input on the ordinance crafted by the legal and Administration and Regulatory Affairs departments. Some Houstonians, however, have been dealing with party houses in their neighborhoods for up to four years.
Ordinance and Amendments
A summary of the draft ordinance outlines “a registration-based regulatory framework related to the issuance of certificates of registration” and a fee for the operation of short-term rentals, declaring certain conduct to be unlawful and providing penalties.
Proposed amendments include:
- Clarification on whether the burden of registration should be placed on the short-term rental owner or operator. Ramirez has suggested that the operator in most cases is likely to be more responsive. Administration and Regulatory Affairs Director Tina Paez said her department prefers the language “owner or operator.”
- Authority to revoke all certificates of registration for an entire multifamily complex if a particular owner or operator has had registrations revoked on two or more of their rental units. Kamin originally proposed the threshold of 25 percent but city staff argued that there was no data to support enforcing the arbitrary percentage. There was some discussion about whether to open the amendment to single-family residences rented out by the same operator.
- Limiting the number of short-term rental units allowed in a multifamily complex. This proposal met the most pushback from operators who claimed it is a “government overreach” on small businesses. Legal action was threatened, and Alcorn ultimately withdrew the amendment, saying the spirit was addressed in Amendment Two.
- A requirement that applicants and employees receive training on recognizing human and sex trafficking.
- Clarifying language on the definition of platforms so that real estate databases are not targeted.
During Monday’s Quality of Life meeting, council members heard from about a dozen residents on the amendments to a draft ordinance posted last month. Short-term rental host Rico Garcia proposed an amendment that he said would help remove bad actors without punishing the hosts who are following the law. The exact language of the amendment was not included in council materials and doesn’t appear to be under consideration.
Miguel Kremenliev has repeatedly suggested the city consider “putting some teeth into the current draft” by adding firm parking limitations, an emergency contact who can respond immediately and take corrective action, a sunset provision that the regulations expire after a set period for re-evaluation, and “accurate and appropriate” fees and taxes.
Ginsburg, a real estate attorney who lives in Montrose, suggested that a density limit should not just be imposed for multifamily properties but also for single-family neighborhoods. Registration fees should be $500 per unit, he said, and those funds could go toward a police task force devoted to short-term rentals.
“When the city charges money for me to get my water heater inspected, that fee covers the inspector but that inspector is not going to come out at 2 in the morning to break up a pool party,” Ginsburg said. “Only a … licensed peace officer can do that. I believe it’s entirely legal to up the registration fee and have that cover a greater police coverage, a greater police attention.”
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This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2025.
