Summary. Sixteen sequences. The first four decide whether the rest apply.

1. Four questions, not one

  • The city — is the use permitted, on what conditions?
  • The HOA or condo declaration — is it prohibited by covenant, regardless of the city?
  • The lease or mortgage — do occupancy, sublease, or business use clauses prohibit it?
  • The insurance policy — does the business pursuits exclusion leave you uncovered?
  • You can be perfectly legal under the ordinance and exposed on all three of the others.

2. Five documents to read

  • The municipal code — search "short-term rental," "vacation rental," "transient occupancy," "home sharing." Read the chapter, not the FAQ.
  • Your state's preemption statute, if any — this layer moves fastest; check annually
  • The HOA declaration, bylaws, rules, AND the last two years of board minutes — the minutes are where you learn an amendment is coming
  • Your lease, if you are a tenant
  • Your mortgage — occupancy covenants and business use provisions

3. Five calls to make

  • Planning/code enforcement: permit required? primary residence requirement? is the cap full? conditions? fine schedule?
  • Revenue/tax office: which lodging taxes apply? which does the platform remit? what must I file regardless?
  • Insurance agent: what does my policy exclude for this use, and what coverage do I need? Get it in writing.
  • HOA manager: permitted? where in the governing documents? any board discussion?
  • Lender, if the mortgage has occupancy covenants

4. The hour with a flashlight

  • Stairs and railings — height, spacing, tightness, lighting
  • Decks and balconies — the most catastrophic failure category. Over ten years old? Have it inspected.
  • Smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors — every required location, tested
  • Fire extinguisher, accessible, current
  • Egress from every bedroom; windows that open
  • Pool/hot tub — barrier, self-closing self-latching gate, depth markings, compliant drain cover
  • Water heater temperature
  • Loose rugs, uneven thresholds, dark hallways
  • Firearms, medications, chemicals, tools — removed or secured
  • Space heaters, fireplaces, grills — instructions posted or removed
  • Photograph what you inspect, dated. This is your defense.

5. The permit application

  • Proof of ownership · proof of primary residence if required
  • Floor plan · parking plan
  • Certificate of insurance meeting the minimum
  • Local contact with a 24-hour phone number
  • Safety self-certification or inspection
  • Tax registration numbers
  • Get the permit number BEFORE listing — most ordinances require it in the listing and enforce by scraping platforms

6. Permit conditions — read, print, post

  • Maximum occupancy (commonly two per bedroom plus two)
  • Quiet hours (often shorter than the general noise ordinance)
  • No events, parties, or commercial gatherings
  • On-site parking only, stated number of vehicles
  • Local contact responds within 30–60 minutes, 24 hours a day
  • Annual renewal
  • Post inside: permit · occupancy limit · evacuation plan · complaint number
  • Trash schedule
  • Most revocations are for repeated condition violations, not for operating unpermitted

7. Insurance — the conversation that matters most

  • Assume the homeowner's policy excludes this. Business pursuits exclusion.
  • Write to the insurer describing: paying guests · average stay · maximum guests · pool present? · host not present
  • Obtain one of: short-term rental endorsement · dedicated STR policy · commercial general liability
  • Liability limits well above the ordinance minimum — $1,000,000 is a floor with a pool or deck
  • Property coverage including guest-caused damage
  • Loss of rental income
  • Umbrella policy, confirmed in writing to sit above a policy that covers this use
  • Read the platform program's actual terms — it is excess, conditional, platform-administered, and limited to that platform's bookings
  • Get all coverage confirmations in writing

8. Taxes

  • Register with every taxing authority that applies — state, county, city, special district
  • Confirm which levies the platform remits and which it does not
  • Confirm filing obligations that survive platform collection — this is where the penalties come from
  • Calendar the filing schedule
  • The fourteen-day rule: a residence rented fewer than 15 days a year — income generally excluded, expenses not deductible
  • Keep a contemporaneous personal use log — the record nobody keeps and the first one requested on examination
  • Know whether you are Schedule E (ordinary rental, no self-employment tax) or Schedule C (substantial services — meals, daily housekeeping, concierge)
  • Understand the passive activity treatment for average stays of seven days or less — technical; get advice
  • Keep: booking records · platform statements · receipts · mileage · depreciation schedules · material participation records

9. House rules

  • Disclosed before booking and in the rental agreement
  • Maximum occupancy, as a number, matching the permit
  • No parties or events, with a stated consequence
  • Quiet hours matching the ordinance
  • Parking — where, how many, and whether street parking is prohibited
  • Smoking policy
  • Pet policy — and note an assistance animal is NOT a pet: a no-pets policy generally must yield, and NO pet fee may be charged
  • Pool/hot tub rules including supervision of children
  • Check-out procedures · trash and recycling
  • Consequences, including ending the stay without refund
  • Disclose any camera. Indoor cameras are prohibited by most platforms and unlawful in many places; hidden recording can be criminal; audio is treated more strictly than video.

10. The local contact — the condition that revokes the most permits

  • Someone who actually answers the phone at 1 a.m.
  • A co-host checking messages during business hours does not satisfy this
  • Options: local property manager · 24-hour answering service that dispatches · a paid local person with instructions · you, if nearby
  • Three documented unanswered calls is a documented permit violation

11. Noise and neighbors

  • Noise monitoring devices measuring decibels without recording audio — inexpensive, effective, disclose them
  • Knock on the nearest doors, introduce yourself, give them your cell number. The cheapest insurance available.
  • Enforce your own occupancy and parking rules with actual consequences
  • Handle trash on schedule
  • Respond to a neighbor within minutes, not days

12. Screening and discrimination

  • Written, neutral criteria applied uniformly
  • Document the reason for every declined booking
  • Never ask about or act on: race · color · religion · sex · familial status · national origin · disability
  • Add whatever your state and locality protect — source of income, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, age
  • The advertising prohibition applies even where an exemption might otherwise apply
  • Handle assistance animal requests correctly — no denial, no fee
  • If using a screening report, consumer reporting rules apply — permissible purpose and adverse action notice

13. The long-stay trap

  • Find out your state's tenancy threshold — frequently 30 days
  • A guest who becomes a tenant cannot be removed without a court proceeding that can take months
  • Consider capping stays below the threshold
  • If accepting longer stays, use a written lease appropriate to your state, not a booking confirmation
  • Never accept an open-ended stay

14. Every stay

  • Dated photographs before and after — a record you keep, not a video you delete
  • Log the guest, dates, occupancy, and anything that happened
  • File damage claims immediately — platform deadlines are short
  • Keep maintenance and inspection records — your premises liability defense

15. When something goes wrong

Guest injury:

  • Get them care
  • Notify your insurer immediately
  • Photograph the scene and condition before anything is repaired or moved (make it safe, but photograph first)
  • Preserve maintenance records, inspection logs, prior complaints
  • Do not make statements about fault

Neighbor complaint:

  • Respond within minutes
  • Deal with the guests; document what you did
  • Follow up with the neighbor and tell them
  • Review rules and screening if it is a pattern

City notice:

  • Read it for the deadline and the provision cited
  • Respond in writing before the deadline, even if only to request the hearing
  • Request the hearing — defaults are how people lose
  • Document corrective action; ask what closes the matter

HOA notice:

  • Request the specific covenant or rule relied on
  • Request the hearing
  • Ask whether it was adopted by board rule or declaration amendment — many declarations do not authorize use restrictions by rule
  • Document selective enforcement — dated screenshots of other units' listings, collected now
  • Check the state common interest community act for notice, hearing, and fine limits

16. Annual maintenance of the operation

  • Renew the permit before it expires
  • Renew insurance and re-confirm coverage in writing
  • Re-check the ordinance and the state preemption statute — this layer moves fast
  • Check HOA board minutes for pending amendments
  • Professional inspection of decks and balconies over ten years old
  • Quarterly: safety walkthrough photographed and dated; test alarms and CO detectors; inspect railings, stairs, pool barriers
  • If stopping: formally cancel the permit · file a final tax return and close the account · notify the insurer · handle existing bookings · tell the neighbors

Related documents

Educational only, not legal advice. Short-term rental regulation, covenant construction, tenancy thresholds, and lodging tax obligations vary enormously by jurisdiction and change frequently.