Schaumburg considering additional regulations on short-term rental homes

Schaumburg officials are proposing new regulations for short-term rental housing that would increase the annual fee from $130 to $300, require a 750-foot minimum buffer between rental properties and prohibit corporate ownership.

The village’s planning, building and development committee will discuss the recommendations Nov. 21.

Schaumburg began regulating short-term rentals nine years ago when a resident began marketing a luxurious backyard tree house for rent.

A June 2020 party in neighboring Roselle, where a 29-year-old Maywood man was killed and several other partygoers were wounded by gunfire, inspired additional regulations across the suburbs.

Even absent such violent incidents, Schaumburg had received 168 complaints from its active short-term rental listings by October 2024. Of these, 72 were police complaints and 96 were for code enforcement. Between July and September of this year alone, there were 16 police complaints and seven enforcement complaints, according to village officials.

Schaumburg currently has about 40 short-term rental listings, village staff reported.

Schaumburg Trustee Jack Sullivan chairs the planning committee and was surprised by the increased number of complaints this year. But he’s among the majority of the village board who don’t support a total ban.

“If you let it happen, how do you put it back in the box?” Sullivan asked. “This is going to be a complicated problem for a lot of towns across the country for a long time to come. We’re probably all on an even par here. To me, I think it’s something that’s going to have to work itself out over time.”

Schaumburg’s survey of the Northwest Municipal Conference and other communities identified nine municipalities that allow short-term rentals, 23 that prohibit them and seven with no regulations.

Schaumburg Trustee Mark Madej favors a ban on the rentals, but is fine with the new regulations as a compromise. One argument he frequently hears against a ban is that it would drive the industry underground, making it harder to monitor.

Madej said he’s gotten complaints about rentals from residents who knock on his door instead of calling police or code enforcement.

“Residents need to understand we need documentation to support our goals,” he said. “We want our neighborhoods family-friendly and safe.”

Though Madej’s resistance to the rentals originally began on behalf of residents farther away, he now has a corporate-owned rental home nearby used for business seminars. Though the attendees weren’t rowdy, they were numerous.

Schaumburg Village Attorney Lance Malina said such practices violate village zoning laws.

Malina hasn’t been asked for a legal opinion of the newly proposed regulations, but suggested grandfathering existing corporate owners until the next sale of a property or favoring the earlier holder of a village license if a distance requirement becomes relevant.

Schaumburg Trustee George Dunham, who also serves on the planning committee, regrets not joining Madej’s level of opposition to short-term rentals earlier. The growth of such business uses in the neighborhoods is not something he favors.

“I’m sorry we approved them in the first place,” Dunham said.