Houston has no citywide zoning, which long made it one of the easier big cities for short-term rentals. That changed in 2025, when City Council adopted the city's first short-term rental ordinance. Listings today range from Midtown and Montrose apartments to Heights bungalows and suburban-style homes near the Medical Center, NRG Park and the Galleria, so guest types vary a lot by neighborhood.
Council approved the ordinance on April 16, 2025. Registration opened in August 2025, and operators were required to comply by January 1, 2026. As of 2026, a short-term rental is any dwelling or part of one rented for less than 30 consecutive days, and each one needs a city certificate of registration. Key requirements:
Operating without registration can bring daily fines, and platforms can be required to remove noncompliant listings after city notice. Deed restrictions and HOAs still matter a great deal in Houston, because they often fill the role zoning plays elsewhere.
Hotel occupancy tax stacks up to 17% on Airbnb bookings: 6% state, 7% City of Houston, 2% Harris County and 2% Harris County-Houston Sports Authority. Airbnb's help center says it collects and remits all four for Houston listings. If you also take direct bookings or use a platform that does not collect, you must register and file the city tax yourself, which is due quarterly. Verify with the city and Houston First, since rules change.
We did not find a reliable published survey of Houston turnover prices, so compare quotes. The biggest local cost driver is the city's size: a cleaner covering both the Heights and Clear Lake spends a lot of time in traffic, so hosts with listings in one cluster usually get better rates and reliability. Humidity also matters. Ask cleaners to check for musty smells, run dehumidifiers if you have them, and report AC problems quickly, since a failed unit in July means a canceled stay.
Houston's calendar is driven by events and business travel more than by weather. The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in late winter and early spring, big games and concerts at NRG Stadium, conventions downtown, and steady Medical Center demand all create spikes. Summer heat softens leisure travel, and hurricane season runs June through November, so have a cleaner who can do quick post-storm checks. Book help early around major event weeks.
Yes. Since January 1, 2026, short-term rentals in the city need a certificate of registration, which requires an annual fee and human trafficking awareness training.
For bookings on Airbnb, yes. Airbnb collects the state, city, county and sports authority hotel taxes. You handle the taxes on any direct or non-collecting platform bookings.
No. Many neighborhoods have deed restrictions or HOA rules that limit rentals. Check your restrictions before you list.
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