The voters of South Lake Tahoe, California, adopted an ordinance that forbade the city from issuing short-term rental permits for properties in residential zones unless the owner was a permanent resident of the city, and declared that all short-term rental permits would expire three years later. The trial court granted the city summary judgment on
Vacation rentals
Texas Supreme Court: We Want To Resolve Whether Short-Term Renting Property A Natural Right, Just Not In This Case
In this order, the Texas Supreme Court declined to review a case we’ve been following, in which the court of appeals held that Grapevine’s total ban on short-term renting of property — banning even owners who had been doing so for a while — might be a taking. The court held that even…
A National Zoning Expert Pays A Visit To The L580 Land Use Class At U. Hawaii

The session was recorded.
Here’s the video and audio.
Earlier this week, planner M. Nolan Gray, author of the new book, “Arbitrary Lines: How Zoning Broke the American City and How to Fix It” (Island Press 2022) joined our Land Use class at the University of Hawaii Law School to talk…
Ice Ice Baby: A Report From The 40th ALI-CLE Eminent Domain & Land Valuation Litigation Conference, Feb 1-4, 2023, Austin
We were eagerly anticipating 40th American Law Institute-CLE Eminent Domain and Land Valuation Litigation Conference. The 2022 Conference in Scottsdale was one of the first meetings where everyone was back in-person (and was a smashing success), but that conference was early in the game so not everyone could or would attend. But in the past…
Hey Honolulu, RSVP To Join Us: Nolan Gray, “Are zoning laws the cause of Hawaii’s housing crisis?” Feb 15 @5:30, U.H. Law School
Here’s your chance to spend some time with the author of one of the hottest land use and public policy books out there, Nolan Gray.
RSVP now (admission free, but space is limited) to join our Land Use class when we welcome Mr. Gray to respond to the question in the title of this post.
(Nearly) Last Call: There’s Still Time To Join Us For The 40th ALI-CLE Eminent Domain & Land Valuation Litigation Conference, Feb 1-4, Austin
We really want you there…
One (nearly) last reminder that there’s still time to register for your space at the 40th ALI-CLE Eminent Domain & Land Valuation Litigation Conference, February 1-4, 2023, in Austin. In the past several years, we have sold out due to the conference room capacity and the conference hotel block.
Here’s The Program For The 40th ALI-CLE Eminent Domain & Land Valuation Litigation Conference, Feb 1-4, 2023, Austin
Here it is, the official agenda and program for the 40th ALI-CLE Eminent Domain & Land Valuation Litigation Conference, February 2-4, 2023 (with a special event the evening of Wednesday, February 1, 2023 to entice you to arrive early).
Here’s the brochure with the complete agenda, schedule, and faculty listing. But to tempt you, …
More On Federal Court Invalidating Honolulu’s 3-Month Minimum Rental Term
Earlier this month, the U.S. District Court invalidated Honolulu’s stretching of the minimum term for a residential rental from 30 days to three months, concluding that the ordinance likely violates the state Zoning Enabling Act, and also would be a taking if implemented. The court issued a preliminary injunction.
The lawyers repping the plaintiffs in…
Federal Court: Honolulu’s 3-Month Minimum Rental Term Preempted By State Law (And Would Be A Taking Of Vested Rights)
Many Honolulu residents don’t like short-term (less than 30 day) rentals. Whether fueled by NIMBY-ism, a genuine belief that tourists should stay out of residents’ neighborhoods and be limited to accommodations built for transients, or the belief that long-term rentals to locals somehow promote more affordable housing, the anti-transient renter vibe is most definitely…
CA5: “But there’s a big difference between saying that something is property for purposes of procedural due process and saying that it is property for purposes of the Takings Clause”
In Hignell-Stark v. City of New Orleans, No. 21-30643 (Aug. 22, 2022), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, like a lot of other courts, reached an unsurprising conclusion: New Orleans’ restrictions on short-term rental of residential properties isn’t a taking. But there are parts of the opinion that are definitely…




