On the heels of a related article in the Des Moines Register regarding West Des Moines' adoption of a new ordinance limiting a property owner’s ability to utilize short term housing rental solutions, AirBNB won a significant victory yesterday by the failure of Proposition F in San Francisco, CA.  That measure would have restricted the number of days per year an apartment may be rented utilizing these services and would allow individual homeowner neighbors the right to sue these services directly for ordinance violations.  This has been a hot-button real estate issue in a city rapt by rapidly rising home costs and apartment rental rates, which some proponents of the measure attribute to the infiltration of these services into the fabric of the community.  But as part of AirBNB’s $8MM campaign against the measure, a counter-argument was advanced pointing out $12MM in hotel tax revenue generated through the service’s use realized by the city.  Laughlin Law has been engaged to advise on this very issue locally, and there no shortage of valid opinions on both sides of the argument.  Bottom line, should you consider renting your house or apartment under a short-term rental agreement, please seek competent legal advice on the matter beforehand.

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-sf-results-airbnb-ballot-measure-20151103-story.html