Friends and neighbors,
The effort to cap short-term rentals is simply a minority group of island residents, owners and long-term renters who wish to limit the property rights of nonresident neighbors who have no vote. Their exaggerations are rampant.
There are no big "corporate investors." And many of the scary numbers being thrown around include hundreds of condominiums, specifically designed for vacation guests and not suitable for year-round living.
As Realtors, we have a fiduciary duty to our clients who buy and sell real estate. We stand to protect the property rights of those who do not live on this island year-round, but, just as importantly, those who do live here and vote. I write this as an IOP resident. I must fight to protect my, and your, ability to rent or sell our home, because we all know circumstances in life change. Someday we may need to rent our properties.
The Isle of Palms is just that, an island, which will always be attractive to vacationing families. They pay to enjoy the paradise we enjoy every day, and we can't forget they also provide the island with a healthy accommodations tax. They are not the problem. The truth is, should this ordinance/referendum pass in November, you lose your rights to decide what is best for your property. There will be no reduction in noise, traffic, littering or any of the other issues this short-term vacation rental ordinance claims to alleviate. Day-trippers will continue to flood our island. In other words, an arbitrary limit on rental licenses is an elementary political stunt designed to win an election and avoid the real issues of our island. If you really want to preserve IOP, please don't fall for political pandering. Remember, we all vacationed here before moving to the Isle of Palms.