Despite the touching stories about financial ruin, the government has a legitimate interest in making sure B&B's are minimally safe and operate without disturbing neighbors. All of these "It's my property!" arguments are supremely disingenuous.
Also, The Washington Monthly has here painted the most sympathetic possible picture of someone stung by hotel regulations.
But in NYC, there's some reason to believe that the intended target of those regs isn't homeowners trying to make an honest buck, but rather unscrupulous businesspeople abusing Airbnb to operate "off the books" hostels --- my many NYC friends and acquaintances have taken to calling these "mob hotels".
before downvoting me, go and look at your deed. find the term "owner" anywhere on it.
yes folks, the county has permitted you to enter into an agreement to make improvements on the land and resell that right to others. the county "owns" the land. most first-time home buyers are surprised to find out that they actually are only considered tenants
"before downvoting me, go and look at your deed. find the term "owner" anywhere on it."
Ok, I happen to have a deed right in front of me for a property having forgotten to put it in the safe deposit box.
On the first page appears the following:
"1. Transfer of ownership. The grantor grants and conveys (transfers ownership of) the property (called the "Property") described below to the Grantee. This transfer is made for the sum of..."
"3. Property. The property consists of the land and all the buildings and structures on the in land in the city of ..."
Seems pretty clear to me that this contradicts what you are saying. I am located in a state on the east coast USA.
yes, you own the improvements, but the point of stipulating you as a TENANT is to permit the county to make and enforce rules, since your improvement is ultimately on their land. not much to argue here, counties have been making and enforcing rules for centuries, there is no loophole to exploit
this is why, for example, foreclosure evictions often involve the sheriff's office - the county is protecting their own property rights. also, mineral rights, right to dispose of hazardous waste, etc etc
'Tenant' is not mentioned anywhere in my deed but perhaps California limits what the government can claim about my property. Were I to own a home on land restricted by a lease then perhaps you would have a legitimate point. I pay property tax and parcel tax on property assigned to me by the deed; the deed assigns ownership to me not the state.
