Short-term rentals in Fairway, explained properly.

Sec. 7-109 says a license or provisional license issued under the article is nontransferable and that a new license application is required for each change of ownership of a rental, short-term rental or non-owner-occupied dwelling. Sec. 7-110(a) adds that a change in ownership requires a new license application and payment of the license fee. Before a sale, the owner of a dwelling that must be licensed has to notify the buyer in writing of all unabated orders or violations and of the requirement that the new owner be licensed, and mail a copy to the Code Official within five (5) days of giving the notice to the buyer (Sec. 7-120(3)).

Sec. 7-106(1) says that where the owner of a dwelling does not reside within fifty (50) miles of the licensed property, the owner shall designate an agent or contact person who resides within fifty (50) miles of it. Sec. 7-106(3) requires every applicant to identify by name, residence address, e-mail address and telephone number a natural person actively involved in, and responsible for, the maintenance and management of the premises; this person may be the owner or an agent, and a post office box is not acceptable as an address. The 50-mile distance sets where the owner or the agent must live; no one is required to live on the property.

The Sec. 7-101 definition of short-term rental property covers any dwelling, dwelling unit, rooming unit, room or portion of one rented for valuable consideration for less than thirty (30) days, and adds that the unit must be located within the principal building and may not be located within an accessory structure.

Sec. 7-106(1) requires an agent or contact person living within fifty (50) miles when the owner does not live within fifty (50) miles of the property. Sec. 7-106(2) asks for the name and contact details of any agent the owner has appointed to accept service of process and to receive and give receipt for notices. Sec. 7-106(3) requires the applicant to identify a natural person actively involved in, and responsible for, the maintenance and management of the premises, who may also be the owner or that agent. Sec. 7-120(1) requires the licensee to notify the City Clerk's office in writing promptly of any change in the information in the last application.

Sec. 7-108 sets the license period from July 1 to June 30 of the following year, expires all licenses and provisional licenses on June 30 each year subject to annual renewal, and has the City Clerk's office send a notice of renewal and application for renewal to each registrant on or before March 31. Sec. 7-110(c) makes the annual license fee due on June 15 of each year, and an original license issued after January 1 of the current licensing period pays 50% of the rental license fee and expires on June 30 of that year.

Sec. 7-110(a) says the original and annual license fees for a rental or short-term rental license or provisional license are set by resolution of the City Council and in the fee schedule adopted by ordinance, and that the City may bill the registrant for excess administration costs that can be identified to the license. The fee schedule hasn't been reviewed yet, so no dollar amount is stated here and this rule is marked for review. An original license issued after January 1 of the current licensing period pays 50% of the rental license fee (Sec. 7-110(c)). Inspection fees from the fee schedule apply to each inspection in a calendar year that is needed because a unit does not meet the standards (Sec. 7-110(b)). A fee, inspection fee or cost not paid within thirty (30) days after it is due carries a penalty of ten percent (10%) of the amount for each thirty (30) days of delinquency, and an amount still unpaid after ninety (90) days is assessed against the parcel as a lien. All fees are nonrefundable (Sec. 7-110(e)). Under Sec. 7-105, an owner who does not return the City's request for declaration form within thirty (30) days of issuance pays a penalty fee of one hundred dollars ($100.00).

Sec. 7-103(b) allows short-term rentals no more than two (2) persons per each bedroom being rented plus one (1) additional person per dwelling unit, not to exceed eight (8) guests, in the dwelling unit at any given time, and says occupants need not be restricted to a single family.

Sec. 7-103(c) bars renting or offering a short-term rental for use as reception space, party space, meeting space, production space or other similar events open to non-resident guests.

Sec. 7-103(e) prohibits on-street parking at short-term rentals, requires all vehicles to be legally parked on the property of the short-term rental, and says the number of vehicles may at no time exceed three (3).

Sec. 7-103(f) bars short-term rentals from allowing shuttle buses, party buses or other similar commercial vehicles to pick up or drop off individuals at the property, and Sec. 7-103(g) allows no exterior evidence that the property is being used as a short-term rental, including signs.

Sec. 7-111(b) requires inspections as a prerequisite to the original issuance of a license and then annually as a prerequisite to renewal, unless a one-year waiver is granted. Under Sec. 7-111(c), a property that passes the annual inspection on the first inspection without a warning letter and is issued a license is eligible for a one (1) year waiver of inspection for the following licensing period; no property is eligible for a waiver longer than one (1) year, and the waiver is forfeited if the property is found in violation of the City's property maintenance code. Sec. 7-111(d) limits the inspections to the exterior of the dwellings to check the minimum standards of the property maintenance code in Chapter 6, Article III, and leaves room for an interior inspection when requested by the tenant or occupant or otherwise authorized by law. Inspections are made by the Code Official (Sec. 7-111(e)).

Sec. 7-118 makes a violation of the article a misdemeanor prosecuted in the Municipal Court of the City, punishable as provided in Section 8-209, and sets a fine of not less than five hundred dollars ($500.00) nor more than one-thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500.00) for a person convicted of allowing to be occupied, renting or offering to rent a rental or non-owner-occupied dwelling unit without a license. Each day that a violation continues after due notice has been served is a separate offense. The section's history note includes Ord. No. 1847 of April 13, 2026. Section 8-209, which the section cites for the general misdemeanor penalty, hasn't been reviewed yet. The article's remedies are not exclusive and add to other remedies such as condemnation, written violation orders, and criminal charges under other City or State codes (Sec. 7-119).

Sec. 7-113 lists the standards for holding a license, and failing any is grounds for denial, refusal to renew, revocation or suspension: the license fee is paid; the number of dwelling units is within the maximum the Code permits; no over-occupancy or illegal occupancy; no conversion to rooming units in violation of the Code; no condemnation as hazardous or unfit; no repeated accumulation of weeds, junk or rubbish on the exterior creating a nuisance under Chapter 6, Article II; no maintenance in violation of Chapter 6, Article II; and no delinquent real estate taxes, meaning taxes unpaid for thirty (30) days. Under Sec. 7-114 the Code Official mails a notice giving the license holder or applicant ten (10) days to correct the defects. Under Sec. 7-115 the City Clerk's office then mails a notice of denial, nonrenewal, revocation or suspension, and the owner must appeal within fifteen (15) days after receipt of the notice. Sec. 7-116 sends the appeal to the City Council, which must decide in writing within fifteen (15) days after the hearing closes and may affirm, modify or reverse the action. After denial, nonrenewal, revocation or suspension the Code Official orders the dwelling or affected units vacated, giving tenants a reasonable time to move (Sec. 7-117).

The Kansas Department of Revenue guide for hotels, motels and restaurants (KS-1540) gives the current state sales tax rate as 6.5% and says counties and cities may add a local sales tax; retailers collect the combined rate. For sales tax, the guide counts a bed and breakfast, cabin camp, hotel, motel, tourist cabin or court, and any other lodging unit with at least four sleeping rooms available for rent to the general public as a hotel, and it counts a business that keeps an inventory of two or more rooms in one or more locations offered for pay as an accommodation broker. It says sales tax applies to the rental of sleeping rooms regardless of the length of stay, including stays of more than 28 consecutive days. Which of these descriptions fits a particular host depends on how many rooms are offered and on how the rental is run; confirm with the Department of Revenue. The saved copy of the guide ends with the revision mark 02-21 and a newer revision was not found, so the rate and room counts are marked for review. Local sales tax rates and the treatment of booking platforms were not read for this layer.

Some Kansas cities and counties charge a transient guest tax on top of sales tax. The Department of Revenue says it applies when more than two bedrooms are furnished for guests and the room is rented for 28 consecutive days or less, and that the local rate comes from the city or county clerk. Kansas law lets counties impose the tax, and lets cities impose it if the county has not; the guide says a county and a city in it are generally barred from both imposing it. The tax is collected by the lodging operator and remitted to the Department of Revenue, which returns 98% to the city or county for promoting tourism and keeps 2% for its costs. Accommodation brokers with two or more rooms must also collect it. The guide lists only two exemptions: a direct purchase by the federal government, and a room rented to the same guest for more than 28 consecutive days. Whether and at what rate a given city or county has imposed the tax was not read for this layer.

K.S.A. 12-1693 lets the governing body of a county with a population of more than 300,000, or of a city in such a county, levy a transient guest tax at a rate of not more than 2% on gross receipts from transient guests for sleeping accommodations in a hotel, motel or tourist court. The tax may not be levied until a resolution calling for an election has been passed, the county has notified the cities in it, notice of the election has been given, and a majority of the votes cast favor it; a repeal, reduction or increase in the rate follows the same steps. Collection starts on the first day of the calendar quarter after the 30th day following a primary or general election, or after the 60th day following any other election. The Department of Revenue guide gives other examples of local rates, so this statute is one of the authorizations and is not the only one. Which authorization covers a particular city or county was not read for this layer.

The guide says a lodging business must have its tax registrations before opening, applies through the Department of Revenue's Customer Service Center, and receives an account number and a Certificate of Registration. How often returns are filed depends on the amount of tax collected; the guide says most hotels and restaurants remit sales and transient guest taxes monthly, and that monthly sales and transient guest tax returns are due on the 25th of the month following the close of the reporting period. A return is due for every reporting period even when there are no taxable sales (a zero return, which can be filed online). A retailer that files sales tax quarterly or annually can choose to file the transient guest tax return at the same time. Transient guest tax uses Form TG-1 and the Department's electronic filing.