NEW ORLEANS — As legal battles persist and Jazz Fest attracts out of town visitors to Airbnb accommodation, short-term rentals (STRs) are once again in the spotlight with public opinion divided.
Since legalizing STRs in 2016, the clash between city officials, local investor groups, and global platforms like Airbnb continues to evolve. Issues around housing shortages and affordability, neighborhood character, and the role of transient lodging in the city’s economy remain at odds.
The City Planning Commission (CPC) held a public hearing on April 8 as part of the ongoing Transient Lodging Study and will continue to gather feedback and develop policy recommendations. Residents are encouraged to provide input to the survey, which was designed by consultant Desire Line, here.
Key elements under review in the study include limiting the number of STR units allowed per building, restricting the number of guests per unit, capping the number of permits per operator, and prohibiting STRs in entire buildings or those not associated with other commercial uses. Other proposals involve requiring on-site operators, separate entrances for short-term units in mixed-use buildings, restrictions near residential units, and using tax compliance tools like Avalara. The study also considers incentives to promote affordable housing in connection with STR activity and possible caps on permits and fee increases.
These proposals follow nearly a decade of evolving STR regulations in New Orleans. Since their initial legalization, the city has sought to strike a balance between promoting tourism and protecting residential communities. Existing rules limit STRs to one per square block in residential areas, require hosts to reside on-site, ban corporate ownership of STR properties, and prohibit STRs in historically sensitive areas like the French Quarter and parts of the Garden District.
But enforcement is resource intensive and time-consuming. Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s office reports stepped-up enforcement, with over 5,200 listings removed, more than $685,000 in fines issued, and hundreds of hearings completed or pending, but according to city data, there are roughly 5,400 to 5,700 active short-term rental listings, about the same as last year, with only around 2,600 permitted.
A new measure taking effect in July will require platforms like Airbnb to verify license validity before listings are posted. That requirement is now the subject of a legal challenge. In Feb. 2025, Airbnb and several local hosts filed a lawsuit against the city, claiming the regulations violate constitutional protections and impose unreasonable burdens on both property owners and the platform. The outcome of the case may have far-reaching implications for how cities regulate digital marketplaces.
City Council President JP Morrell has been a vocal proponent of tighter restrictions, citing the city’s housing shortage and the need to protect neighborhood integrity.
“If we cannot regulate short term rentals, there will not be any,” Morrell said in Feb.
A comment made by Morrell on April 5 on social media has brought a new dimension to the dispute. In a public Facebook post, Morrell referred to a group opposing the city’s STR regulations as a “manufactured local group” allegedly created by Airbnb. The statement was widely interpreted as referring to the New Orleans Real Estate Investors Association (NOREIA), a nonprofit organization that has supported the interests of local property investors since 1983.
NOREIA responded to Morrell’s post by pointing out its long-standing history in the city and rejecting the suggestion that it was created or controlled by Airbnb. One of its members responded to Morrell on Facebook by stating that Morrell was trying to “gaslight the City Council into believing that NOREIA is a fake organization set up by Airbnb.”
NOREIA’s members argue that they represent legitimate local stakeholders who have been overlooked in the city’s policy discussions.
The dispute between Morrell and NOREIA adds another layer to an already complex situation. While housing advocates warn that STRs worsen the affordability crisis—citing, among other sources, a 2022 HousingNOLA report estimating a deficit of 47,000 affordable housing units—others argue that short-term rentals provide critical income for local residents and support small-scale entrepreneurship in a city heavily reliant on tourism.
In addition, there is confusion over what the Desire Line Transient Lodging Study covers. It states: “This Study does not address Non-Commercial (or residential) Short-Term Rentals.” In other words, it does not address Airbnb rentals in residential neighborhoods. People taking the survey might think the survey pertains to all STRs.
Stephen Keighery, Director of Marketing & Memberships at NOREIA and founder of Home Buyer Louisiana, specializing in purchasing distressed properties, has written to Desire Line seeking to clarify the matter. In the letter he sates: “I don't think the survey clearly communicates to respondents that CSTRs (Commercial Short-Term Rentals) can only be located on land zoned for commercial use. This distinction seems crucial because, when surveying people about their opinions on CSTRs in their neighborhoods, I believe many will not fully understand the zoning limitation.”
But Monet Brignac, Director of Communications for Councilmemeber Morrell, says otherwise. “The Desire Line survey is about all transient lodging including CSTRs, hotels/motels, and bed and breakfasts. The survey is clear that it addresses other forms of transient lodging, not just CSTRS.”
On the face of it, this appears contradictory. However, the confusion comes from the fact that hotels, motels, and bed and breakfasts are not classified as STRs. So while the survey is restricted to rentals in commercially zoned areas only, it is not limited to CSTRs but include hotels, motels, and bed and breakfasts in commercially zoned areas.
And if that were not confusing enough, it does not address the point that people filling out the survey may not realize that their answers only pertain to commercially zoned properties including CSTRs, hotels/motels/B&Bs in commercially zoned areas.
Both STRs and CSTRs are currently restricted by owner-occupancy rules which place limits on the number of STRs per city square and restrictions on corporate ownership. But Commercial STRs (CSTRs) are further restricted by an Interim Zoning District (IZD) which came into effect in 2023 temporarily halting the issuance of new CSTR permits across the city. This pause is in effect until May 7.
Keighery’s letter to Desire Line further states: “In reality, if someone lives in a residentially zoned area, they will not have a CSTR operating next door. Most of the arguments against STRs are due to them changing the fabric of residential neighborhoods (which I sympathize with) and I believe people will be against CSTRs for this reason, not understanding that the CSTRs can only be in commercially zoned locations. I believe this distinction could substantially influence how respondents answer the survey and, consequently, the results you receive.”
