Austin council approves new short‑term rental code changes, delays implementation and orders enforcement software; hotel tax collection set for April 1

The Austin City Council on Feb. 27 approved a reorganization and set of amendments to short‑term rental (STR) rules that move land‑use eligibility into the Land Development Code and the licensing, enforcement and business rules into the city's business/Title 4 code, while delaying full implementation to allow new enforcement systems to be procured and brought online.

Council members, staff and dozens of residents traded more than three hours of testimony and debate about the effect STRs have on housing supply, neighborhood quality of life and enforcement capacity. Council voted to delay effective dates for the land‑use and licensing changes until Oct. 1, 2025, and to set hotel‑occupancy‑tax (HOT) remittance by platforms to begin April 1, 2025, while directing staff to expedite purchasing one or more software products to support licensing and enforcement.

Why it matters: Residents and housing advocates argued at the public hearing that unrestricted STR growth reduces the stock of long‑term housing and contributes to displacement; businesses and some council members focused on transparency, tax compliance and workable enforcement. The council's actions attempt to balance those goals by creating an enforceable licensing framework, requiring platforms to remit HOT, and buying software to scale enforcement — but delaying many substantive new constraints until staff systems are in place.

What the council approved and how it will work

- Land use vs. business licensing: The council adopted an ordinance (item 39, alternate version) that makes STR use an eligible accessory land use when a property holds a…