We have owned and rented properties in Breckenridge for 16 years and have payed our fair share of short-term lodging fees and short-term rental licenses annually.

Short-term rentals of homes continue to be the tourism lodging choice of visitors to our great state. Tourism is good for Colorado! It creates jobs and demand for local businesses.

Lawmakers have decided that they no longer want short-term rentals of homes. They have limited the number of short-term rental licenses, raised the short-term rental license cost and are charging more for water if you own a home used for short-term rentals. Now the state is proposing this new bill. Enough is enough! As previously mentioned, short-term rentals have become tourists’ preferred choice of lodging. This is too much taxation and will result in class-action lawsuits against the state and local municipalities. 

This new state bill does not fairly tax homes used for short-term rentals 90 days or more on an equitable basis versus hotels. Hotels are taxed based on revenue while homes are taxed on an estimated market value of the home. Minimally, the bill should calculate taxes based on a function of revenue similar to that of hotels. Also, homes used for short-term rentals are not usually available 365 days per year like hotels are since the owners often use the home for themselves during a portion of the year. Finally, this bill if passed would drive down the value of homes used for short-term rentals and thus reduce in number, eliminating options for tourists. 

Please review and re-consider all sides of this bill as it will have unintended consequences for Colorado and its tourism.