LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — It's been three years since Clark County commissioners promised to fix the short-term rental chaos with new regulations.
However, as part of our commitment to fight for what's right, we're hearing from local homeowners who say the county's slow-moving permit process is costing them tens of thousands of dollars.
Listen to what these local homeowners had to say
Several frustrated property owners reached out to me asking what's the deal with these endless delays?
It was an ordinance that nobody seemed to like.
"None of us up here wanted to be doing this," Clark County commissioner Justin Jones said in a 2023 meeting.
"I just want to put that concern on the record," commissioner William McCurdy said.
"I have a lot of issues with this ordinance," commissioner Michael Naft said.
"What happens if we don't do it," commissioner Marilyn Kirkpatrick questioned.
JULY 2022: Clark County officials approve short-term rentals with regulations
So how did we get here?
Back in 2021, state lawmakers passed a law that basically said 'hey local governments, figure out how to regulate short-term rentals.' So Clark County did what they were told. They created an ordinance in 2022.
Here's the kicker. Instead of a first-come, first-served system, they decided to use a lottery. That means your application gets processed in random order, not when you actually applied. According to the Greater Las Vegas Short-Term Rental Association, that's created a nightmare.
"There were several things that we were against because we knew it was going to cause this confusion and these delays for everyone, including the county," said Jacqueline Flores, founder of the Greater Las Vegas Short-Term Rental Association.
Just ask homeowner Michael Watson. Earlier this year, county officials admitted they're only processing about six applications a week. Watson won a spot in the lottery but he's still waiting.
"At number 382 in the lottery process, I'm probably still three months out based upon their current calculations, in terms of seeing any movement forward," Watson told me. "Even if I get to that point, I'm not even certain what's next. They haven't given us any indication that once your lottery number comes up, what might be the next steps after that and how long might that step take in addition. Waiting three years and having to keep this location, keep the insurances, it's becoming more and more difficult to sustain and to see at what point might you see the light at the end of the tunnel."
MARCH 2023: Clark County short-term rental lottery drawing causes confusion
Watson's not just sitting around waiting. He's spending money. State law, which the county incorporated into its ordinance, requires expensive home insurance and annual business license fees.
"$6,000 or $7,000 in that process, kind of the mandatory elements, but also the other elements I spent money on: the design, getting the Airbnb completely remodeled," Watson said. "There was a lot more than that invested and the idea that any business could establish a location, completely set up shop and then wait indefinitely, right now we're at three years, to open its doors, it's not possible."
There's another problem: distance requirements. The ordinance says short-term rentals can't be too close to each other. However, homeowners don't know where the approved locations are until they're already in the application process.
"Is that when the license is given to the first person or is it when they finally get to your number and then realize 200 people ago that there was a location right next door," Watson questioned.
Homeowner Zachary Krassin shares in that frustration. Wanting to do everything by the book, he tried to apply for a license. However, the county told him he had to wait for another lottery. There was no fixed number of available licenses in the initial lottery, just a cap that it wouldn't be more than one percent of the county's housing stock, which is just over 2,900, as of 2024. I reached out to Clark County and a spokesperson clarified that there are 2,940 short-term rental licenses available.
According to the county, they received 1,306 applications during the lottery period. Of those, 830 applications were submitted during the application period. Since then, only 203 licenses have been approved and issued. County officials say 315 applications were denied or withdrawn and 312 applications are still pending.
Even though the ordinance says lotteries should happen every year, the county hasn't held one since 2023. We asked why and they didn't answer, instead sending a statement saying, "the County is reviewing its policies on short-term rentals and will share more information about additional opportunities for licensure when available."
"It was frustrating, when you're trying to be a good steward of the law and you don't know where to go, and you don't know how long it's going to take, and you're just trying to figure out, 'What am I going to do now," Krassin said.
So Krassin opened his short-term rental anyway and was immediately hit with a $4,000 fine.
"I found it interesting that in the time period where I was really trying to do it correctly, and I called, and I actually went down to code enforcement, I wasn't getting anywhere. But the moment I opened, they were all over identifying and trying to remove me from that space," Krassin said. "I felt like they were focused more on how they can get a fee versus actually helping to legally fill this process and get a business license."
After paying his fine, Krassin shut down his listing and had to cancel six months of bookings. Both homeowners tell me they wish the individual platforms could step in to help them.
"I am disappointed that Airbnb hasn't done more at this point to either stop those listings or put the information out to the people using their app," Watson said. "Also, to the visitors who may have booked a reservation, only to have their reservation canceled at the last minute because code enforcement has issued a citation or a fine."
Clark County is trying to force platforms like Airbnb to police themselves.
"By requiring Airbnb to verify licenses before allowing them to post on the platform," Flores said. "The problem is that the county doesn't have their licensing process together. So how do they expect Airbnb to use a system that's broken in order to verify these listings?"
We learned other cities don't have this problem. I called Henderson and North Las Vegas to see how fast they process applications.
North Las Vegas? Three business days.
Henderson? Two weeks.
Clark County? Years.
North Las Vegas and Henderson also give licenses on a first-come, first-served basis unlike Clark County. It's hitting locals trying to make money the hardest.
"If you have events like Formula 1, for example, every single year, they have a need for various permits and licenses to be issued and the county works overtime to get those things done in a timely manner," Flores said. "But when it's average people, people who need this income, the county seems to drag their feet and they don't see it as something they need to act on urgently."
All of this has led to multiple lawsuits. The association and Airbnb are both suing Clark County, claiming the ordinance violates property rights.
JULY 2025: Las Vegas short-term rental owners file federal lawsuit against Clark County
The association already won one case over mandatory wastewater hookups and Airbnb won an emergency injunction that stopped the county from forcing them to remove unlicensed listings. The federal judge said the requirement would be too burdensome for the platform.
Airbnb would not comment on the County's request for them to police unlicensed listings on their platform. However, they did send a statement about their recent court victory, saying it comes at a crucial moment for Las Vegas homeowners and visitors. They said while the injunction is a win, the fight against Clark County’s short-term rental restriction is far from over.