City Convicts First Landlord/Airbnb Host Under Its New Law Prohibiting Short Stay Rentals Of An Entire Residence For Less Than 30 Days; Landlord Vows To Leave Town After Thumbing Nose At Authorities

In Santa Monica, California, the Los Angeles Times reports:

• Santa Monica, which last year passed some of the nation’s toughest regulations on short-term rentals, has now convicted its first Airbnb host under the new law, prosecutors said.
  
  Rental operator Scott Shatford, who listed five properties on Airbnb, was charged with eight misdemeanor counts of operating a business without a license and failing to comply with citations after he refused to stop renting out his properties, Deputy City Atty. Yibin Shen said [].
  
  Shatford pleaded no contest on July 5 in a plea deal with the city, agreeing to pay $3,500 in fines and to stop renting properties within the city. He was also placed on two years’ probation.
  
  In May 2015, the Santa Monica City Council unanimously passed a law outlawing rentals of less than 30 days. The law allows so-called home-sharing, such as renting a couch or spare room while the owner is present, but bars renting an entire residence for fewer than 30 days.
  
  At the time, the new rule outlawed more than 80% of the city’s estimated 1,700 short-term rentals.
  
  The city now has a full-time task force dedicated to the issue, with two code enforcement officers and an analyst, said Shen, the prosecutor on Shatford’s case.
  
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  Shen, the prosecutor, said city officials received a complaint from someone who had rented one of Shatford’s properties. The woman was surprised to learn that she was renting a unit that was illegal and was uncomfortable with the situation, Shen said.
  
  Before referring the case to the city attorney’s office, the new Vacation Rental Enforcement Task Force “attempted to work with and educate Mr. Shatford for many months, issuing multiple warnings and citations with fines,” the city said in a statement, adding that Shatford “boasted publicly that he was ‘not concerned’ about local law.”
  
  Shen said he hopes the case will serve as an example for the public.
  
  “The city views its rental prohibition quite seriously, and it takes enforcement of these laws quite seriously,” Shen said.
  
  As for Shatford, he’s moving to Denver this week, after 13 years of living in Santa Monica. He said he hopes people are more tolerant there.

For the story, see Santa Monica convicts its first Airbnb host under tough home-sharing laws.