LEXINGTON, S.C. — A new ordinance governing short-term rentals in Lexington County went into effect on Jan. 1, 2025. The ordinance requires owners to pay an annual $320 fee per location.
Robbie Derrick, the director of Community Development, said this follows the council's approval of a short-term rental ordinance last spring. The county is working with a compliance company to pinpoint these properties.
"We are identifying roughly 600 short-term rental locations in the unincorporated areas of Lexington County. Short-term rentals being defined as either owner-occupied or non-owner-occupied for a period of one to 29 days," Derrick said. "So, we've identified those locations. We'll be sending out general letters advising of the new regulations."
Derrick said that about 50 letters will be sent each month or two. Owners must respond to these letters within 30 days of receiving them.
"They'll have to complete the application; send us what necessary information we're requesting, including some type of site or sketch plan for the location," Derrick said. "So, we're, we're anticipating this is going to take potentially a year, a year and a half to even get all the original 600 short term rentals permitted."
Lexington County officials said they believe that enhancing traffic management, reducing noise, and tackling trash issues will improve the quality of life.
"It's to assist the county with contact information and ensure that certain standards are met for quality of life not only for those who are neighbors, but for those who may be occupying these for a short period of time," Derrick said.
However, some Airbnb owners in the county aren't thrilled about this.
"I actually did not know about it until one of my Carefree members told me about it and I had to look up, look it up and look into it. And I am 100% against it," said Matthew Lyons, owner of Lake Murray Resort and Lake Murray Airbnbs.
Lyons, who owns and operates 14 Airbnbs on Lake Murray, said the communication with owners has not been well executed.
"Lexington and the Midlands area is a really awesome and unique place," Lyons said. "I don't want to see it become Illinois or California or anywhere else, and this is one step towards that. So this isn't about if Lexington charges me $500 a year to be at Airbnb, I'm OK with that. It's not about that. It's about regulating an industry that doesn't need it."
Lisa Harris, a local realtor and Airbnb host, also doesn't like the new ordinance.
"I also have issue with some of the things that were put in place like requiring it to have someone that is a guest be 25 or older," Harris said. "We have a lot of military in this area, and some of those military are not 25, but I feel as if, and I've had good experiences in my guests, with some of them being under the age of 25."
She said that if regulation is to be implemented, it should be universal across counties and states and include long-term rentals.
"I really feel like the state should get involved in this, and I have actually reached out to several of our state legislators," Harris said.
Owner of Heartwood Furnished Homes, David Bergmann, said he hopes new iterations of the ordinance will be discussed.
"We don't love everything about the ordinance, but we do understand the intent," Bergmann said.
Lexington County said this ordinance will require permitting to be renewed every year and estimated it'll take the next 12 to 18 months to complete permitting.
County leaders also said they had to hire two employees to manage these short-term rentals. The short-term rental fees will cover the expenses of implementing the ordinance, resulting in a net zero gain. The county said this means the ordinance doesn't bring a new revenue stream.