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HomeMy WebLinkAboutReply from Appellant - Information to presentTo: ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS BOARD STAFF REPORT Subject: Vacation Rental Appeal – 2548 N. Aurora Dr., Palm Springs Parties: James Brodfuehrer & Manuella J. Lopez Citation Number: ABO457 FACTORS IN MITTIGATION: James Brodfuehrer & Manuella Lopez applied for the appropriate vacation rental permits, all fees were paid, the initial inspection had passed and they were verbally told they should have the permit by March 8, 2023. They had every intention to do everything by the book. This was the parties first foray into vacation rentals, James is a dentist in San Diego and Manuella is a consultant to dentists also in San Diego, both are respected members of their community. They love Palm Springs and wanted to be able to vacation there, they purchased 548 N Aurora Dr. home to use themselves and for family, but applied for the vacation rental permit as many do to help subsidize the costs associated with a vacation home. The violation was more about not understanding the Airbnb software, not intentionally trying to violate the law. Neither James nor his wife are in real estate, they hired Nicole a realtor to set up the vacation rental site and to manage the leasing. Neither James nor Manuella had any direct involvement with the Airbnb site or the imputing the information, they relied on their realtor. On the face of the listing it clearly states “Now taking 30 day rental requests!”. James and Manuella subsequently learned about the drop-down menu under select dates, which was set by default to 6 day minimum. This was never their intention, it was set by default to 6 days, and was left there in error based on a lack of understanding of the software. Had they actually been doing vacation rentals it would have been set to 1 night not 6, but at that point they intended it to be set for 30. A large error, but one easy to make when not familiar with the system. No person has ever rented the property as a vacation rental under 30 days, in fact at that time the property was rented only 2 times for 30 days each time. As can be seen by the text messages between Wayne and Nicole, it was Nicole the realtor who was responding to Wayne’s inquiry. Nicole was not authorized to make reservations for less than 30 days. Although a small point, no reservation was actually made. Wayne mentioned in his initial message that he wanted to stay for a week, he also asked about the pool. Nicole responded, answering the questions about the pool and Palm Springs in general, but they didn’t discuss the specific dates. It can be inferred that Nicole simply did not pay close attention to the dates, relying instead on the system and the fact that it was advertised as a 30-day rentals. Wayne 1:37 PM Hi there, beautiful home! Looking to book for a week for a birthday getaway from LA from 3/16-3/23/23 with a few friends. I just wanted to see if the pool is heated, and if so, is there an extra fee? Any good restaurants nearby? Thanks! Nicole 1:49 PM Hi Wayne! Thanks for the inquiry- the pool isn't heated so no extra fees. Still fun to float in a refreshing dip. This is a new rental so we want to be careful there are no loud or messy parties, hopefully your friends are old (or wise) enough to celebrate respectfully as a guest? @.,A Lots of fun places to go nearby, Palm Springs always has great energy! Wayne 2:10 PM Hi Nicole, thank you for the reply. Yes, we are in our late forties, so definitely no loud parties for us! Will the weather be warm enough to use the pool in March? Nicole 2:17 PM· Great to know, thanks for the extra insight on your group. It's in the mid 80s in March, really nice time of year- great for sun bathing, not sure if you will want to go full swim then but up to y'all, it's hard to tell, especially if you guys are busy out doing things and just want to relax poolside a bit, it's a nice option to have for sure! Under the text messages there is an automatic system message generated by the above exchange and inquiry “Nicole invited you to book for 5 guests on March 16 -23 Complete booking” James and Manuella later learned that these are automatic messages when someone inquires about the property, they are not generated by actions or acceptance of the listing party. Under the above system message there is a text box which stated: Manuella invited you to book their home The invitation allows you to instantly book for the next 22 hours This Invitation was a (Bot), an automated system message programed automatically into the system to remind persons who submitted an inquiry to book a room, it was not through the actions of Manuella. Manuella did not monitor the system and she was unaware of the inquiry by Wayne . The system was able to generate those messages due to the incorrectly preprogrammed “6 days minimum rental” It was not the intent of James or Manuella to allow short term rentals at that point. Had the room actually been booked the parties would have canceled the reservation. The listing itself has always said 30 day rentals, the site did not overtly advertise under 30 day rentals. Unfortunately, deeper in the system other options open up, when someone selects dates a message appears “minimum 6-day rental” on the first page of the listing. James & Manuella had every intent to do things correctly as evidenced by the fact that the listing clearly stated 30-day rental in the, they applied for the proper permits, and they intended to do 30-day rentals only until the permit was issued. They realized they were not real estate professionals, so they hired a realtor to manage the rental. Unfortunately, the realtor in San Diego was not as familiar with the Airbnb site or the specific regulations in the Palm Springs area as the parties had hoped. As a corrective measure the parties subsequently contacted a local Realtor, Julio De La Concha with Windermere realtors in Palm Springs to handle the future rentals of their home, including future vacation rentals and listings, once properly permitted. Although there was a technical violation, the parties are asking that there not be a permanent ineligibility to operate a vacation rental in Palm Springs. That a probationary period may be a more appropriate consequence in this situation. James and Manuella are committed to being good and responsible owners and would like to offer short-term vacation rentals for their home. They have paid the initial application fees and have every intention of following the ru :;-�/. •. � J� . Respectively Submitted � James Bro fi rer