Pittsburgh City Council
Short-term rental regulations move forward after mass shooting at Airbnb on New Year's Day.
Written by Amy Whipple
Short-term rentals are a problem in the city.
Last month, Council Member Deb Gross of Highland Park reintroduced two bills from last year to begin regulating short-term rentals available from websites such as Airbnb, Vrbo and Booking.com.
One is to change related zoning laws and the other would require out-of-town property owners to receive an operating permit. According to Gross, local operators who rent one or two properties will not be required to have a permit.
She said at the Feb. 11 meeting of council committees that last year’s research showed that approximately 3,000 properties in the city are available for short-term rental. Approximately half of operators only have two properties or fewer.
Permits for larger-scale renting will be similar to those required for Bed and Breakfast operators in residential areas.
Council Member Bobby Wilson of Spring Hill represents the North Side where two shootings have taken place in Airbnbs (Spring 2022 and Jan. 1, 2026). “It’s very unfortunate that this conversation had to be put back on the table because of this mass shooting,” he said.
Wilson added that hotel chains such as Marriott are also operating short-term housing rentals in the city.
Council voted to refer the zoning bill to the Planning Commission. It will take at least 12 weeks—after the NFL Draft—to move through the remainder of the process. The licensing bill will be held until then.
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