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Getting legal in your town: permits, licenses and taxes
General information, not advice. Rules and situations differ from place to place and from one property to the next. Check with the office, insurer or tax professional who governs your own case.
Short-term rental rules are set close to home. The same house can be fine to rent by the night in one town and not allowed in the next town over. Before you take your first booking, work out which rules reach your property — then keep the paperwork current.
The layers that usually apply
- Zoning. Your city — or your county, outside city limits — decides where short-term rentals may operate at all. Some places allow them in residential zones, some only in commercial zones, and some only with a conditional use permit.
- A state lodging license. Some states license vacation homes the way they license other lodging, with an application, a plan review and an inspection.
- A city or county permit. Many towns add their own short-term rental license or permit, renewed every year, sometimes with a limit on who may hold one (for example, only for your primary residence).
- Lodging and sales taxes. Stays under a set number of nights are usually taxed like other lodging. Some booking platforms collect and send certain taxes for you; others don't, and bookings you take directly are yours to report.
- Your HOA or lease. Homeowners' associations and landlords can forbid short-term rentals even where the town allows them.
- Insurance. Some permits ask for proof of liability coverage. See what insurance actually covers.
How to find your rules
- Start with the city's planning or licensing office if you're inside city limits, and the county's if you're not. Search the official site for "short-term rental" or "vacation home".
- Check the state's department of health or licensing office for a lodging license, and the state's department of revenue for lodging and sales taxes.
- Write down each license number and renewal date in one place. Several places require the license number in your listing or posted inside the unit.
- Read your HOA covenants or lease before you buy furniture.
Summaries by place
Our rules by place pages summarize what official sources state for the places we cover so far, each dated and linked to the official page.