County prohibits short-term rental stays

To reduce exposure to and spread of COVID-19, the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners has prohibited short-term rental stays in the rural, unincorporated areas of the county. The order does not apply to short-term rentals in the City of Sisters.

The order, which goes into effect immediately, will prohibit stays of less than 30 days in vacation rentals, short-term rentals, timeshares, inns and bed and breakfasts. It will remain in effect until May 15. The order does not prevent an owner of a timeshare from using their own timeshare, but it does restrict them from renting their timeshare to another party.

“We’re doing everything we can to protect the health and safety of Deschutes County residents,” said Deschutes County Commissioner Patti Adair. “It is our hope that taking this step now will limit non-essential travel to our region and help to reduce the spread of COVID-19.”

During their meeting last week, commissioners said they’ve received multiple requests from local residents to issue the order based on behavior they’ve seen the past two weeks. Many of the requests came from permanent residents who live in resort communities.

“By taking this step, we hope our region will be better positioned to recover quickly after the pandemic ends,” said Deschutes County Commissioner Phil Henderson. “Central Oregon is a fantastic place to visit, but for now, some trips must wait. We need to take steps now to ensure that we’re doing everything we can to control and contain the spread of this virus.”

The order does not prohibit reservations needed for permitted essential travel, including reservations needed for health, safety or employment.

For more information, visit http://www.deschutes.org. A copy of the full order is available in the County’s news section.