Destin, FL short-term rental registration
Destin treats short-term renting as a registration exercise with a hard calendar. The city code makes it unlawful to let anyone occupy a single-family dwelling as a seasonal resident unless the property is registered with the city, and the same applies to townhomes, duplexes and triplexes. Registration runs by calendar year and starts again every January 1, at $200 a unit. Miss March 31 and a $100 late fee lands; miss June 1 and it becomes $500. The city also expects three documents you obtain elsewhere before it will process anything.[6]
Every rule below links to the official source it comes from, verified September 20, 2026.
Can you rent short term in Destin?
Register before you list
What you apply for: Short-Term Rental Registration
- Seasonal homes
- 5,021
- Housing units
- 13,668
- Residents
- 14,077
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates
- City ruleRegistration required
- City fee$200
- Tax on each stay13%
- Seasonal homes367 per 1,000
Destin short-term rental registration
Destin requires every short-term rental to be registered with the city: the code makes it unlawful to let anyone occupy a single-family detached dwelling as a seasonal resident unless the property is registered, and townhomes, duplexes and triplexes are covered too. Registration costs $200 per unit, the application fee is non-refundable, and the year runs from January 1, so every property re-registers each January whatever month it first joined. The late fees are steep and staged: $100 after March 31, then $500 after June 1. Before applying you need three documents obtained elsewhere — a City of Destin local business tax receipt, a DBPR dwelling licence and a State of Florida resale tax certificate. Destin defines a short-term rental as any occupancy between one day and six months, which lines the city up with the state's own tax threshold.[6]
What Destin asks of you
The code makes it unlawful to let a person occupy a single-family detached dwelling as a seasonal resident in Destin unless the property has been registered with the city. Single-family homes, townhomes, duplexes and triplexes all have to register.[6]
Destin defines a short-term rental as any occupancy of a dwelling unit for between one day and six months, which lines the city definition up with the state's own tax threshold.[6]
Registration costs $200 per unit and the application fee is non-refundable.[6]
Registration restarts on January 1 each year. A $100 late fee applies after March 31, and after June 1 the late fee becomes $500.[6]
Before applying you need a City of Destin local business tax receipt, a DBPR dwelling licence and a State of Florida resale tax certificate.[6]
What Florida asks wherever you host
These rules apply at this address whatever the city decides.
Florida licenses vacation rentals itself. A house, townhouse or unit in a building of four units or fewer is licensed as a dwelling, a unit in a condominium or cooperative as a condominium, and the licence costs $150 plus $10 per rental unit plus a $10 hospitality education fee.[2]
A city cannot ban vacation rentals, nor regulate how long or how often you rent, unless its ordinance was already on the books on June 1, 2011. Ordinances adopted before that date survive untouched, which is why two neighbouring Florida towns can sit at opposite ends of the scale.[1]
State sales tax is due on every rental of six months or less. A bona fide written lease for more than six months of continuous residence is exempt, and so is the seventh month onward once a guest has stayed and paid for six.[3]
What a guest pays on top of your nightly rate in Destin
Each layer is set by a different authority, and not all of them are collected by the platform.
| Layer | Rate | Remitted to |
|---|---|---|
| Florida state sales tax[3] | 6% | The state revenue department |
| Okaloosa County discretionary sales surtax[5] | 1% | The state revenue department |
| Okaloosa County Tourist Development Tax[4] | 6% | The county |
| Total on a taxable stay | 13% |
Okaloosa County runs its own tourist development tax at 6% across both its tourist development tax district and the expansion district, and collects it itself. Add the state layers and a taxable Destin stay carries 13%.[4]
How short-term rental taxes work for US hostsWhat the census counts
How much of Destin is already a second home
The Census Bureau counts 5,021 of Destin's 13,668 homes as vacant for seasonal, recreational or occasional use — 367 out of every 1,000. That ranks Destin 9th of the 33 Florida cities on this site for the share of its housing stock kept for part-year use.
- Rank in the state
- 9th of 33
- Share of housing
- 367 per 1,000
- Median home value
- $490,300
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates, tables B25004, B25001, B01003 and B25077.
Nearby and comparable
Where Destin sits among its neighbors
Sunny Isles Beach, FL
Permit required
7,208 seasonal homes, 367 per 1,000 housing units.
Rules in Sunny Isles BeachBradenton Beach, FL
Registration required
776 seasonal homes, 416 per 1,000 housing units.
Rules in Bradenton BeachLauderdale-by-the-Sea, FL
Registration required
3,163 seasonal homes, 458 per 1,000 housing units.
Rules in Lauderdale-by-the-SeaAnna Maria, FL
Registration required
517 seasonal homes, 344 per 1,000 housing units.
Rules in Anna MariaFAQ
Destin short-term rental questions
When does a Destin short-term rental registration expire?
Does a condo in Destin have to register with the city?
How much tax does a guest pay in Destin?
Sources
- Florida Statutes § 509.032(7), Duties — preemption of vacation rental regulation, The Florida Legislature, read on September 20, 2026
- Guide to Vacation Rentals and Timeshare Projects, Division of Hotels and Restaurants, Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, read on September 20, 2026
- Sales and Use Tax on Rental of Living or Sleeping Accommodations (GT-800034, R. 10/25), Florida Department of Revenue, read on September 20, 2026
- Local Option Transient Rental Tax Rates (DR-15TDT, R. 03/25), Florida Department of Revenue, read on September 20, 2026
- Discretionary Sales Surtax Information for Calendar Year 2026 (DR-15DSS), Florida Department of Revenue, read on September 20, 2026
- Register a Short Term Rental, City of Destin, read on September 20, 2026
This page is not legal advice. It summarizes the official sources listed on this page as they read on September 20, 2026. Rules can change after that date, so check with the issuing office before you apply or publish a listing.
Before you list
Free tools for new hosts
Short-term rental agreement generator
Parties, dates, rent, deposit checked against your state's cap, and the house rules clauses you enforce. A signed-ready PDF for direct and Vrbo bookings.
Airbnb house rules
Generate a complete PDF house rules document for your property: rules, schedule, amenities, emergency contacts.
Rental arbitrage calculator
Rent, deposit, furnishing, nightly rate and occupancy. You get monthly cash flow, the occupancy you break even at, and how long the setup takes to pay back.
Check-in instructions
The message a guest reads before getting in: access, keys, WiFi, parking, contact. English or bilingual output.