The issue of illegal short-term rental properties in East Hampton has grown so acute — with out-of-town investors buying up homes and flipping them for vacation rentals — that town officials are looking to beef up enforcement, they said.

Town officials said they will consider purchasing software to aid enforcement of their rental property registry law , which was established in 2015. Only about half the 1,874 properties listed online as short-term rentals are registered with the town, which has a $200 application fee, according to data presented by Deputy Supervisor Cate Rogers. Rogers used AirDNA, a vacation rental industry market analytics company.

Having more homes used by seasonal vacationers risks diminishing the area's housing stock for full-time residents and damaging the local

See Full Page