Owners of NC vacation rentals will be required to take human trafficking awareness training

DENVER, N.C. ( QUEEN CITY NEWS ) — Even on a rainy day like Monday, a view on Lake Norman just doesn’t get old.

“We love our home,” said Eileen Dean. “Even though we don’t live there, we spend a lot of time maintaining it. Our families are up there several times a month.”

Eileen and her husband Casey bought their home on Lake Norman knowing the economics of their purchase would require them to rent it out. It was their chance to live out their dream of owning a waterfront property.

“Right now, it doesn’t make sense,” she told Queen City News. “We both work full-time jobs, and he has like two jobs that he’s working, actually, so to make it work, we can’t be living there.”

They rent it out on websites Airbnb and VRBO, and their story of why and how they own this short-term rental isn’t out of the ordinary, but what was once an easy person-to-person rental opportunity for many has become a delicate balance of keeping neighbors happy and letting renters enjoy their vacation.

Cities and towns like Matthews have explored efforts to regulate where they can operate.
And in July of next year, a State House bill will take effect to require vacation rental property managers, employees, and third-party contractors to undergo human trafficking awareness training.

“For certain issues, like this one, I do feel like it’s reasonable, and it’s within reason to say, ‘Hey, the numbers have gone up. We would like for you, as a business owner, these are the new regulations you have to follow.’” Dean said.

At the end of the day, Eileen Dean says they don’t want their place scarred by negative or nefarious activities.

They want people to have what they got by purchasing this home: memories for life.

“We’re able to not only facilitate that for ourselves, but also allow other people to have that,” she said.

To view House Bill 971, click here.

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