How short-term rental regulations could impact the South Florida market

South Florida is a visitor’s paradise, offering everything from entertainment, to diverse food and unmatchable weather.  So it’s no surprise there’s no shortage of short-term rentals in the area.

“It’s the epicenter of short-term rentals,” said Sep Niakan, a broker for BlackBook Properties. 

Niakan says Miami has been embracing the trend for years.

“Certain buildings are designated to be allowed for short-term rentals and actually are built for that purpose,” he said.

In fact, he says construction for several of these buildings in Miami are already underway.

“Most of those projects are already sold out,” he said.

By 2027, Niakan says he expects about 15 short-term-rental-friendly buildings to be ready in the greater downtown Miami area.

“From Brickell to Edgewater,” he said.

According to AirDNA, a short-term rental data analytics company, in December there were over 22,000 available listings in Miami-Dade county – a 19% jump from 2019. Broward County saw a 71% increase from 2019, with over 17,700 available listings that same month.

“We’d be hard pressed to find a market that has absorbed or taken on the concept of short-term rentals more than Southeast Florida,” said Ken H. Johnson, a real estate economist and professor at Florida Atlantic University.

He explained the trend isn’t just confined to Miami.

“Anecdotally, you can just see it in virtually every neighborhood,” Johnson said. “I walk out front and there are short-term rentals right across from my home.”

He added, “This has always been in the marketplace, just never to this magnitude.”

State lawmakers are taking notice.

Earlier this month, the full Florida Senate approved Senate bill 280, which would allow local governments to create vacation-rental registration programs.  It would also cap maximum overnight occupancy and would establish a uniform set of regulations throughout the state. You can read the bill here: https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2024/280

Last year, New York made headlines after new rules went into effect, requiring short-term rentals to register in the city. The rules also require hosts to be physically present in the home for the duration of a rental.

Some cities in South Florida already have their own restrictions.  Fort Lauderdale requires a vacation rental registration fee.  Coral Gables bans short-term rentals in residential areas altogether.

“Miami has areas that it’s allowed, areas that it has not allowed types of units,” Jamie Lane, chief economist at AirDNA said. “It’s a very dynamic market.”

Johnson said he does not see the trend slowing down.

“As long as the economy is strong, I actually think we’ll see significant numbers, no matter what we do legislatively,” he said.

A similar bill was filed in the state house.  You can read House bill 1537 here.

HB1537 would make county tax collectors responsible for administering registration programs. Both bills would require platforms that advertise short-term rental listings to collect state and local taxes.