, City of Bath, Maine - Official Website - Short Term Rentals

Short Term Rentals

For the first time in 2024, the Assessor has reached out to those offering short term rentals in Bath with a income and expense survey that seeks to understand the impact of short-term rentals, if any, on the real estate market. 

Below you will find answers to some frequently asked questions regarding this survey. Copies of the materials mailed regarding short term rentals can be found on this page as well.

Letter to Property Owners (Short Term Rentals)

Instructions for completing Short Term Rental Questionnaire

Questionnaire regarding Short Term Rentals (Fillable Form)

Property Valuation
This section addresses how the short term rental survey may or may not affect property valuations.
Confidentiality
Information that is not otherwise publicly available can be marked on the survey as proprietary and confidential.
What does checking the "confidential and proprietary" box on the survey actually mean?

Under Maine Revised Statutes (MRS) Title 36 §706-A, any information requested by the Assessor that is proprietary and confidential can be protected (under penalty of law) from being disclosed to most other parties. This means that we will keep the survey results in a locked file cabinet, and will not include them with any request for public records from the assessor's office. Sharing confidential and proprietary information without your written consent to those not authorized to view it is a Class E crime. 

However, similar information to that found in the survey may be publicly available from other sources, including estimates of the average price charged to short-term renters, and estimates of the number of days the property was available for short-term rental use. Publicly available information cannot be deemed proprietary and confidential under MRS Title 36 §706-A.


Income Approach to Valuation
The assessor is asking questions about income and expenses for short term rental businesses in order to consider whether an income approach to valuation is an appropriate method to use in valuing real estate used as short-term rentals.
What is the Income Approach to valuation?

Most commercial properties require an Assessor (or an appraiser) to consider an income-based approach to valuation of the property. An income approach to valuation considers property valuation from the point of view of a real estate investor's expected return on investment. The income approach determines the value of a property today based on the present worth of the property's future income production. The basic equation to calculate the income-based value of a property is Net Annual Income divided by Capitalization Rate = Property Value. 

How does the income approach to valuation apply to short-term rentals?

Most short-term rental properties are located in single family homes, or in properties with less than 4 housing units. Such properties are usually too small for an income approach to valuation to be useful in the mass appraisal process used in valuing properties for property tax purposes. However, over the years a few of Bath's short term rental properties have sold for unexpected high prices. This survey is designed to help the Assessor better understand if an income approach to valuation should be considered, and under what circumstances such an approach might be applicable.



Assessor
Phone Numbers
207-443-8336
Emergencies: Dial 911
Location
55 Front Street
Bath,
ME
04530

Monday - Thursday
7:30 AM - 5:00PM