The case of Johnson v. Pocono Twp. Zoning Hearing Bd. & Pocono Twp., 1048 C.D. 2021 (Pa. Commw. Ct. Feb 07, 2024) addressed several key legal principles related to Pennsylvania short–term rental (colloquy “Airbnb”) zoning ordinances and property rights. This Pennsylvania Common Pleas Appeals Court case did two important things: First, it weighed in on an important question by deciding that a township’s zoning ordinance prohibiting...
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Happy New Year! Along with our collective resolutions have come the imposition of new regulations from the City of Philadelphia. On January 1st, 2023, Philadelphia rolled out a new set of regulations for Airbnb and short-term rental properties. While these should not come as a surprise to anyone since the City has been delaying the start of these for some time now, Airbnb has now...
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Pennsylvania Judge Stacy Wallace ruled on October 31, 2022 (Permanent-Injunction-Granted.pdf (ij.org) that state real estate licensing requirements were unconstitutional when applied to Petitioner, Sally Ladd, who manages short-term rentals in the Poconos. Sally Ladd was forced to shut down her short-term rental business in 2017 after the state department began investigating her for practicing real estate without a license. Ladd has been renting out her...
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One topic I get at least one call about per week is the accessory dwelling unit. While it’s a cool idea and awesome when it works, it’s a rare circumstance when it does, and they are not the backdoor to getting that duplex that you’ve been desperately searching for. Accessory Dwelling Units, or “ADU”s in zoning nerd speak, historically called granny flats or backyard cottages, are...
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