Residents in a West Arlington neighborhood say they’ve formed a watchdog group to monitor illegal short-term rental properties in their community.<\/p>\n
The group, called Woodland West Watchers, includes nearly 30 neighbors, each concerned with homes they say are being used in ways that violate city regulations.<\/p>\n
“The concern is the safety of the kids, our house values. Overall, it’s against the law in the neighborhood,” said Brett Sutton, one of the concerned neighbors. <\/p>\n
Sutton points to a nearby home he says has been converted into a 10-bedroom property, with multiple rooms rented out to different people.<\/p>\n
“It’s just like an apartment complex in a neighborhood,” Sutton said. “We’ve had people run from the cops. He wrecked his car, and then they put the busted-up car back in the driveway.” <\/p>\n
Arlington city rules restrict a single-family home to no more than four unrelated residents.<\/p>\n
The City of Arlington confirmed that two properties on Yellowstone Drive are currently in violation of the city’s short-term rental regulations. Officials said both properties recently received two citations each.<\/p>\n
According to the city, neither property has a short-term rental permit, and neither is eligible to operate as a short-term rental under current rules.<\/p>\n
A larger problem<\/p>\n
City leaders say the issue extends beyond just one neighborhood.<\/p>\n
Arlington City Council member-at-large Bowie Hogg said the city is looking at dozens of potentially illegal rental properties.<\/p>\n
“We believe we’ve identified probably 30 to 50,” Hogg said.<\/p>\n
Some, he said, are long-term rentals but violate the “family” aspect of the city’s code. <\/p>\n
“A 2,500 square foot house, someone went through and got permits and turned it into an eight-bedroom house,” Hogg said, “And they’re renting out the eight bedrooms to unrelated individuals.”<\/p>\n
Hogg explained this increase in density can create logistical problems. <\/p>\n
“As you can imagine, that is then creating issues with parking. It’s creating issues on the street,” he added. <\/p>\n
Hogg said a city committee has been formed to examine ways to strengthen enforcement and close possible loopholes in the city’s ordinance.<\/p>\n
“We’re also looking at like a one lease per single-family house,” he said. <\/p>\n
Another possible solution, he said, is a rental registry for properties that have a history. <\/p>\n
“If you have major violations, if you have health and sanitation violations, then you would have to register,” Hogg said. <\/p>\n