Short-term rentals in Hudson, explained properly.

Sec. 325-28.3(F) defines a short-term rental by reference to Sec. 275-22: a room made available as short-term lodging that is subject to the City lodging tax and is not in a hotel that either has a manager on the parcel at least eight hours a day on days it has rooms rented or available, or paid a sales tax attributable to its operation for a period ending on or before May 31, 2020. A short-term rental unit is one with its own access and egress that is separately offered to the public. Sec. 275-22 defines short-term lodging as a room let to a third party or parties for not more than 29 consecutive days, and a room as a room or suite with access to a sanitary facility connected to the City sewer; a noncompliant structure (tent, camper, gazebo and the like) is not a room. Sec. 275-23(B) exempts from the tax a single room in the host's primary residence under three conditions; how that exemption fits the zoning definition is a question for the City.

Sec. 325-28.3(C). Each sleeping room must have affixed to the occupied side of its entrance door a written notice stating the means of egress, the location of means for transmitting fire alarms, if any, and the evacuation procedures for a fire or smoke condition or alarm.

Sec. 275-27(B)(1) says the host pays application fees as established by resolution of the Hudson Common Council, available for inspection in the City Clerk's Office. The fee for a first-time registration is pro-rated relative to the renewal date. The resolution and its effective date haven't been reviewed yet.

Sec. 275-27(C). Each certificate recites the host's name, the address and the number of rooms available for short-term lodging.

Sec. 275-27(D). Failing to conspicuously post it is a fine of $100 to $250, with each day not posted a separate violation (Sec. 275-36(C)).

Sec. 275-23(A) imposes the tax in addition to any other tax authorized by another taxing jurisdiction, and this page does not total it with New York State and local sales tax (see the New York rules above). The exemption in Sec. 275-23(B) covers a single room (which may include an en suite bathroom) if it is in the host's sole residence in the City and is the host's primary residence, no more than one such room is offered in that residence, and access to the room is solely through the host's primary residence. Entities exempt from New York State sales tax are exempt on proof (Sec. 275-23(C)); Sec. 275-25 exempts listed government and non-profit use. 'Host' excludes booking agents such as Airbnb and VRBO. Returns are filed quarterly for periods ending on the last day of February, May, August and November, with return and payment due within one month after each period end (Sec. 275-28(E)); records are kept three years. A late return or payment draws a 5% penalty plus 1% interest for each month of delay except the first (Sec. 275-36(B)). Posted Sec. 275-44 (Sunset) reads 'until December 1, 2025', the date the amended article took effect, so confirm with the City Treasurer that the tax continues.

Sec. 325-28.3(A)(3)-(4). The variance required dollars-and-cents proof of substantial investment made before March 6, 2020, documentation of receipts, proof that no reasonable return is possible from any other permitted use, and the minimum extension necessary. The section's history note says it was added on 11-17-2020 by L.L. No. 7-2020; its effective date is not stated in the text we hold.

Sec. 325-28.3(E). We haven't reviewed Sec. 325-33, so the fine amounts for a zoning violation are not stated here. Under Sec. 275-36 a failure to comply with a demand for records is fined $100 to $250 per violation, each day a separate violation.

Sec. 325-28.3(D). The listed provisions are Chapter 157 (Garbage, Rubbish or Refuse), Chapter 210 (Noise) and Sec. 300-27 (Unlawful abandonment of dangerous vehicles) of the Hudson Code, for the parcel on which the rental is located.

New York's Real Property Law article 12-D (sections 447-a to 447-g) covers short-term rental units: an entire dwelling unit or any room or space in a dwelling rented to guests for fewer than 30 consecutive days for tourist or transient use. It does not cover New York City. Every county that is a covered jurisdiction must set up a registration system (counties may share one), unless the county adopted a local law opting out by the later of December 31, 2025 or nine months after the section took effect. Places that already had their own short-term rental registration system when the article took effect, and places that ban short-term rentals, are not covered jurisdictions. In a covered area, a host must register the unit with the county; registration lasts two years, a tenant who is not the permanent occupant or lacks the owner's written permission cannot register, and the registration number must appear on every listing. The unit must not be a single room occupancy, must have a posted evacuation diagram, a posted list of police, fire and poison control numbers and a working fire extinguisher, must be insured for at least $300,000 for third-party property damage and bodily injury (a booking service's insurance can count), and must not be a rent-regulated unit. Booking services may not collect a fee for a unit whose county registration they have not verified. The host requirements and the booking-service check do not apply until the county has set up its registry. Counties warn hosts for the first two violations, may fine up to $200 for a third and up to $500 a day for each later violation, with a seven-day cure period. Any county, city, town or village may pass a local law prohibiting or further limiting short-term rentals. Check your county's website for its registry.

The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance says that, effective March 1, 2025, New York State and local sales tax applies to sales of short-term rental unit occupancy in the state when the rental rate is more than $2.00 per unit per day. A guest pays the tax until becoming a permanent resident by staying in the unit for 90 consecutive days. A $1.50 per unit per day fee applies only in New York City. Counties, cities, towns and villages may charge their own additional occupancy tax, which they administer themselves; those are listed on each city page.

Publication 718 of the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance (rates effective March 1, 2025) lists the state rate as 4% and the combined state and county rate for each county and for cities with their own rate. Erie County is listed at 8 3/4% with no separate city rate. The Department's online Sales Tax Jurisdiction and Rate Lookup gives the rate for a specific address. Local hotel or occupancy taxes are separate and are listed on each city page.

A booking service (a platform that provides the place where the sale happens and collects the rent) that facilitates a short-term rental stay in New York must register with the Tax Department as a sales tax vendor and collect New York State and local sales tax on every stay it facilitates. It must give its hosts Form ST-155, Booking Service Certificate of Collection, within 90 days, or have a publicly available agreement saying it will collect the tax. A host whose stays are all facilitated by a booking service, and who has that certificate or agreement, does not collect the sales tax on those stays.

A host (operator) of a short-term rental unit in New York must register with the Tax Department as a sales tax vendor and collect New York State and local sales tax on stays, unless the host rents out their own property for 3 days or less in a calendar year without a booking service, or a booking service handles all of the host's sales. Registration is done through New York Business Express.