Websites to Find Laws/Rules for Airbnb's in Specific Cities

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Websites to Find Laws/Rules for Airbnb's in Specific Cities

Dana Miller
Member since 2022 · 11 posts · 4 votes

I'm having trouble figuring out what to do for my first out-of-state investment.

I am looking into doing turnkey in either Indianapolis, IN ; Memphis, TN ; or Oklahoma City, OK thru either Rent to Retirement or REI Nation. I know these are low-hanging fruit areas in the sense that they are cheap to buy but they are cash flowing like $100/mth.

To combat this issue, I was thinking of renting out only 1 of 3 bedrooms as a short term rental and/or as a photoshoot studio so I can be able to earn extra cash on that specific room.

First of all - am I allowed to do that..period?

Second, does anyone have any websites they use that catalogs all the different Airbnb laws/rules for each city in every state?

Thank you 

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Lara White
Rental Property Investor · Oklahoma City, OK · Member since 2020 · 309 posts · 184 votes
4y

Hi @Dana Miller here's the link for OKC https://www.okc.gov/department....  We are a pretty large metro area, so outside of Oklahoma City, there will be different city codes for the surrounding cities (Edmond, Yukon, Midwest City, Moore, Norman, etc), so like @Luke Carl suggested, you can probably just google "specific city short term rental" or "home sharing license." 

If you are looking for only $100/month - I'd agree that with @John Underwood that a LTR will get you that. I have several rentals here in OKC and get from $300-500/month cash flow from them (some of them I bought at the right time to get that much though). A STR should get you a lot more than that. There are areas where they will only approve a 1 year license, so that's something to think about here in OKC. And anything over 30 days rental is not considered a STR anymore - so if you do a mid-term rental - you don't need the short term license here.

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  • Michael BaumPro Member
    Olympia, WA · Member since 2016 · 8k+ posts · 7k+ votes
    4y

    Hey @Dana Miller, there is no clearing house site that covers all short term rental rules everywhere. They are usually specific down to even the town level so that seems kind of impractical.

    Awning has some, but they are pretty vague. You really need to check out the local municipal sites to find out the current rules in a specific area.

    Regarding the per room rental and the photoshoot studio. The photoshoot studio would most likely be a commercial enterprise so you will end up dealing with zoning laws. It will all be dependent on the area. Renting by the room is not unusual, but the host usually lives on site to manage it.

    Why do anything with R to R or REI nation? Doesn't seem like a deal to me at all.

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  • Luke CarlPro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Tennessee Florida · Member since 2016 · 4k+ posts · 5k+ votes
    4y

    Google “specific city short term rental” usually it’s as simple as that. But not always. 

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  • John UnderwoodPro Member
    Investor · Greer, SC · Member since 2014 · 13k+ posts · 17k+ votes
    4y

    If.you can only cash flow $100/month I do a LTR that makes more than that.

    You need to find a better property or location that can cash flow more than $100 for the extra work of an STR.

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  • Leslie Anne Morris
    Real Estate Agent · Smoky Mountains, TN · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 984 votes
    4y

    I usually call the county or city depending where the property is and find out which department I need to speak to in order to determine STR regulations.

    0Reply
  • Lara White
    Rental Property Investor · Oklahoma City, OK · Member since 2020 · 309 posts · 184 votes
    4y

    Hi @Dana Miller here's the link for OKC https://www.okc.gov/department....  We are a pretty large metro area, so outside of Oklahoma City, there will be different city codes for the surrounding cities (Edmond, Yukon, Midwest City, Moore, Norman, etc), so like @Luke Carl suggested, you can probably just google "specific city short term rental" or "home sharing license." 

    If you are looking for only $100/month - I'd agree that with @John Underwood that a LTR will get you that. I have several rentals here in OKC and get from $300-500/month cash flow from them (some of them I bought at the right time to get that much though). A STR should get you a lot more than that. There are areas where they will only approve a 1 year license, so that's something to think about here in OKC. And anything over 30 days rental is not considered a STR anymore - so if you do a mid-term rental - you don't need the short term license here.

    2Reply
  • Chris ClothierBusiness Member
    Rental Property Investor · memphis, TN · Member since 2009 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    4y
    Quote from @Dana Miller:

    I'm having trouble figuring out what to do for my first out-of-state investment.

    I am looking into doing turnkey in either Indianapolis, IN ; Memphis, TN ; or Oklahoma City, OK thru either Rent to Retirement or REI Nation. I know these are low-hanging fruit areas in the sense that they are cheap to buy but they are cash flowing like $100/mth.

    To combat this issue, I was thinking of renting out only 1 of 3 bedrooms as a short term rental and/or as a photoshoot studio so I can be able to earn extra cash on that specific room.

    First of all - am I allowed to do that..period?

    Second, does anyone have any websites they use that catalogs all the different Airbnb laws/rules for each city in every state?

    Thank you 

    Dana, First, thank you for mentioning my families' company. Happy to assist you if I can and answer questions for you along the way. I agree with a couple of other posters on here, you will be able to realize a higher cash flow on most REI properties than $100 and likely much higher. How you use that revenue with be important. And, you can earn that in both Memphis and Oklahoma City, the two cities you mentioned.

    What I am not sure of is the question.  Are you asking if you specifically take these properties and rent them by the room?  If you are asking about local regulations in OKC or MEM, @Luke Carl and @Dana Miller both shared the best way to find those regulations. I do know that although you would own the property you purchased from REI, we do not operate in short-term rental or room by room rental properties. That would be something you would want to google as well to find out if those types of management companies exist in those markets. I do think that all three cities you listed are quality cities that still offer great opportunity for a passive, long-term rental that will consistently produce income for you. There are good companies in each. My advice would be to be patient and research. Stay near median price points for the city and in areas that are not facing hardship and challenges. Lastly, spend some time finding a good management company and you. should be able to passively own a quality property in any of those cities that hits your expectations. Good luck -

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  • Tyler LingleBusiness Member
    Real Estate Consultant · Indianapolis, IN · Member since 2021 · 440 posts · 292 votes
    4y

    Honestly in my experience for Indy there is no centralized source. A good agent will have researched, formed connections with investors / local people, to advise you. This is what I have done with Indy. For example, I know in Indy the two strictest suburbs / cities are Carmel and Zionsville. Whereas other areas, are completely laissez faire type. (Probably mispelled that). I'd love to help you advise on your strategy to find a property!

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  • Mike D'ArrigoPro Member
    Turn key provider · San Jose, CA · Member since 2010 · 4k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    4y

    @Dana Miller every local municipality has it's own regulations and permit processes. Just do a Google search on the are you are considering. It can range from no restrictions to having restrictions on the number of days in the year that you can rent on a short term basis. There are also a lot of variances on the permitting process. 

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  • Pam Brown
    Real Estate Agent · Indianapolis IN · Member since 2022 · 144 posts · 65 votes
    4y
    Quote from @Dana Miller:

    I'm having trouble figuring out what to do for my first out-of-state investment.

    I am looking into doing turnkey in either Indianapolis, IN ; Memphis, TN ; or Oklahoma City, OK thru either Rent to Retirement or REI Nation. I know these are low-hanging fruit areas in the sense that they are cheap to buy but they are cash flowing like $100/mth.

    To combat this issue, I was thinking of renting out only 1 of 3 bedrooms as a short term rental and/or as a photoshoot studio so I can be able to earn extra cash on that specific room.

    First of all - am I allowed to do that..period?

    Second, does anyone have any websites they use that catalogs all the different Airbnb laws/rules for each city in every state?

    Thank you 


     Hello Dana.  I've been a RE Broker in Indianapolis for 20 years. I don't think that you should go for the rent one room idea.  It sounds like trouble and I can't think of any tenants that would be cool with one of their rooms being rented. Like someone else said--that scenario would be more for a home-owner that wanted to rent out one of their own rooms in their house.  

    With that being said---Indy is an affordable market for investments.  Check out my Profile and let me know if you would like my help.  Thanks

    0Reply
  • Dana Miller
    OP
    Member since 2022 · 11 posts · 4 votes
    4y
    Quote from @Dana Miller:

    I'm having trouble figuring out what to do for my first out-of-state investment.

    I am looking into doing turnkey in either Indianapolis, IN ; Memphis, TN ; or Oklahoma City, OK thru either Rent to Retirement or REI Nation. I know these are low-hanging fruit areas in the sense that they are cheap to buy but they are cash flowing like $100/mth.

    To combat this issue, I was thinking of renting out only 1 of 3 bedrooms as a short term rental and/or as a photoshoot studio so I can be able to earn extra cash on that specific room.

    First of all - am I allowed to do that..period?

    Second, does anyone have any websites they use that catalogs all the different Airbnb laws/rules for each city in every state?

    Thank you 


     Thank you everyone for your responses!

    I'm starting to think I'll have better luck with cash flow purchasing a commercial office space and turning it into a photo studio or one of those office shared spaces LOL 

    0Reply
  • Jossalyn Wallace
    Real Estate Agent · Destin, FL · Member since 2019 · 116 posts · 111 votes
    4y

    To find out local rules you need to call the city or county. Where I am located, in addition to calling the county I always read the neighborhoods restrictive covenants (if it is in a neighborhood) to make sure I am good from that standpoint as well. Although a county may allow it, doesn't mean the neighborhood always does. 

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  • James Carlson
    Real Estate Agent · Colorado | stan.store/JamesCarlson · Member since 2014 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    4y

    @Dana Miller

    Congrats on taking a big step for that OOS investment. 

    Unfortunately there is not central repository for all STR laws in the country, in a particular state, or a particular metro. I know because we've made a whole nice in real estate out of knowing the city and county Airbnb or short-term rental laws in Denver, Colorado Springs, and other Colorado cities. As Lara pointed out, some cities have a good web page for their laws, but not all of them. And even if you can find that, make sure you're reading the ordinances correctly. I still have STR investors come to me saying they know the laws in X city, but have the details all wrong.

    Good luck in you venture. 

    0Reply
  • Nathan Krish
    Investor · CA · Member since 2022 · 3 posts · 1 vote
    4y

    I believe there are six states that provide state-level protection against excessive local regulation of short term rentals. Those states are Arizona, Idaho, Indiana, Florida, Tennessee, and Wisconsin. In any other state, there will be ongoing risk that local government has the purview to establish rental bans and restrictions. 

    Here is a legal brief on the matter:

    https://www.ncsl.org/Portals/1...

    1Reply
  • Olivia De Oliveira
    Realtor · Memphis, TN · Member since 2018 · 8 posts · 3 votes
    4y

    Hey @Dana Miller, there are deals to be found in Memphis that cash flow more than $100! I'm an agent, wholesaler, and investor in Memphis so I'm speaking from experience! Memphis is also very short term rental friendly. You just have to apply for a permit and pay a small fee. Here's more info on STRs in Memphis: https://www.getchalet.com/rent...

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