New short-term rental (STR) permits in New Orleans, Louisiana, are banned for one year in areas of the city zoned for commercial use.
The ban is the culmination of a city ordinance announced in March and adopted by the Council of the City of New Orleans on April 6, 2023. The new ordinance introduced a variety of rules for residential STRs, most notable of which relating to on-site operators. After a previous rule requiring owners to live in the building they rent out was found to be unconstitutional, the New Orleans City Council now requires STRs to have on-site operators that live in the rented building. The owners do not have to live on-site.
On-site operators have a variety of responsibilities, including maintaining quiet hours and being able to respond to any complaints within one hour. Following announcement of the ordinance in March, a group of STR operators sued the city, alleging that the ordinance was unconstitutional. The ordinance includes other measures for restricting the amount of STRs in residential zones, seeking to prioritize housing for New Orleans residents over visitors.
While commercial STR permits are on a yearlong hiatus, residential STR permits are still obtainable. New residential permits will be issued through a lottery system beginning August 14.
Short-term rentals in New Orleans involve plenty of intricacies and complications. Lodging marketplaces can vary on tax collection. While one collects New Orleans and Louisiana taxes, another only collects city taxes. This leaves owners with the obligation for collecting and remitting New Orleans city taxes or any taxes not collected by their platform and with the responsibility for filing lodging tax returns with both the city and state taxing authorities.
The next steps for STR owners in New Orleans are unclear. With new permits banned throughout the next year, commercial STR owners are awaiting a report from the City Planning Commission outlining recommendations for the City Council to take. The report is due out in September 2023.
(City of New Orleans Ordinance No. 29397 and 29398, adopted by the Council of the City of New Orleans, April 6, 2023)