An ongoing concern among Seven Isles residents are the vacation home rentals that exist in our neighborhood. Unfortunately, there’s little the City of Ft Lauderdale can do to prevent these properties from existing, other than governing their compliance to already-existing city ordinances, such as noise levels. The Seven Isles HOA is also powerless to approve or deny these properties. Short term rentals such as Airbnb, VRBO and other services are regulated at the state level. So, what can we individually do when short-term vacation renters are rowdy, noisy, and wreaking havoc on our streets?

The City’s Code Compliance division can step in by initiating a case if they receive valid complaints from neighbors. Complaints can be directed to the city’s 24-hour Customer Service line at 954-828-8000, or you can contact personnel by email, including Porshia Williams at PorshiaW@fortlauderdale.gov or Felicia Blue at FBlue@fortlauderdale.gov . If short-term renters are being particularly disruptive and require immediate intervention, residents can call the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, although an email or verbal complaint should still be registered with the Code Compliance department.

The City’s website includes several comprehensive resources pertaining to vacation rentals. For example, there is a web page dedicated to Vacation Rentals Registration Enforcement, which includes a list of all applicants, grouped by district, who have been issued a Certificate of Compliance by the City. Seven Isles is in District 2.

There is also a list of all properties that have been reported and/or that have been discovered to be operating illegally, also accessible for viewing by district. If you click on District 2, you will be directed to a PDF that includes properties in Seven Isles that have been out of compliance. The document provides the name of the property owner, the type of violation, the compliance status, and the case number, among other things. Violation types include but are not limited to noise complaints, party houses, and operating without a certificate. You can view the webpage here.

To view all vacation rental properties in Seven Isles, view the District 2 PDF here.

Properties that have been cited for operating as a vacation rental must achieve compliance by obtaining a Certificate of Compliance, or discontinue as a vacation rental through deactivating or closing down all relevant advertising, as well as provide written verification of same to the City’s Code Compliance division.

At the conclusion of this article, there is a flow chart which demonstrates the process used by the City to open and process a case when a complaint is received. However, this Case Process can only be effective if the Code Compliance division knows about the problem, and that’s where you come in — individual residents need to alert the City to issues occurring with short-term rentals in order for a case to be opened. In the past, many residents have called the guardhouse and complained about vacation rentals. However, the Seven Isles guards can only observe and report. They can call the police, but they cannot intervene to stop a party or stifle a rowdy crowd. They cannot request a case with Code Compliance.

Residents need to take their own action. While your actions may not stop the current abuse, it could mitigate future abuses occurring at the same property. Having evidence of all code violations allows the City to pursue fines and actions that will force the vacation rental locations into compliance.

Additional to this article

This is a recent registration report from the City of Ft Lauderdale’s Code Compliance division, showing all properties in Seven Isles that are registered as short-term vacation rentals. This is a public record, so residents can use this information to directly contact the owner of a neighboring short-term rental regarding any potential problems or concerns. Complaints should also be filed with the Code Compliance division so that a case can be opened.For any potentially dangerous or emergency circumstances, the Ft. Lauderdale police should be notified. If you are aware of a neighboring property being used as a short-term rental that is not on this list, please notify Julio Davila, Code Compliance Supervisor, at 954-828-6505 or JDavila@fortlauderdale.gov