Indian Rocks Beach, FL short-term rental registration
Unless you live in the property or it carries a homestead designation, Indian Rocks Beach wants a registration before you rent short term. The county tourist development tax account is part of that registration, which makes the county return a condition of renting here.[6]
Every rule below links to the official source it comes from, verified October 2, 2026.
Can you rent short term in Indian Rocks Beach?
Register before you list
What you apply for: Annual Vacation Rental Registration
- Seasonal homes
- 851
- Housing units
- 3,415
- Residents
- 3,664
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates
- City ruleRegistration required
- City feeNone published
- Tax on each stay13%
- Seasonal homes249 per 1,000
Indian Rocks Beach vacation rental registration
Indian Rocks Beach requires an annual vacation rental registration for any property rented to overnight guests, under ordinance 2023-02. The city commission adopted it on May 9, 2023, and brought it into force on August 1, 2023. The ordinance follows the state's definition of a transient public lodging establishment. That is a structure rented to guests more than three times in a calendar year. Each rental runs less than thirty days or one calendar month. The shorter of those two periods applies. The structure is also advertised or held out as a place rented to guests. You first need a state lodging license, a Florida Department of Revenue sales and use tax certificate and a Pinellas County tourist development tax account. You then pay the city's annual local business tax, whose amount depends on the number of units you rent. The city will not give final approval without proof of a passed Pinellas Suncoast Fire Rescue inspection. Registrations renew each year on the date they started. Owner-occupied rentals and properties designated as homestead are exempt on affidavit, which the city checks against Pinellas County records.[6]
What Indian Rocks Beach asks of you
The city commission adopted short-term rental ordinance 2023-02 on May 9, 2023, and it took effect on August 1, 2023.[6]
Owners who rent, or are considering renting, for overnight or short-term stays must file an annual vacation rental registration application.[7]
The ordinance defines a transient public lodging establishment as a structure rented to guests more than three times in a calendar year. The rentals are for periods of less than thirty days or one calendar month, whichever is less. The structure is also advertised as a place rented to guests.[7]
Before registering you need a state lodging license, a Florida Department of Revenue sales and use tax certificate and a Pinellas County tourist development tax account. You also need the city's annual local business tax, whose cost depends on the number of units rented.[6]
Proof of a passed Pinellas Suncoast Fire Rescue inspection is required before final approval, and registrations renew annually on the date they began.[7]
Owner-occupied vacation rentals and properties designated as homestead are outside the article. Owners file an affidavit and the city verifies the homestead status against Pinellas County records.[6]
What Florida asks wherever you host
These rules apply at this address whatever the city decides.
Florida licenses vacation rentals itself. A dwelling license covers houses, townhouses and buildings of up to four units. A condominium or cooperative unit takes a condominium license instead. The license costs $150 plus $10 per rental unit, plus a $10 hospitality education fee.[2]
No Florida city may ban vacation rentals. It may not set how long or how often you rent either. The one exception is a local ordinance already in force on June 1, 2011, which still applies.[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. 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 Indian Rocks Beach
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 |
| Pinellas County discretionary sales surtax[5] | 1% | The state revenue department |
| Pinellas County Tourist Development Tax[4] | 6% | The county |
| Total on a taxable stay | 13% |
The city makes the Pinellas tourist development tax account part of registration, so the county return is not optional paperwork here: it is a condition of being allowed to rent.[6]
What the census counts
How much of Indian Rocks Beach is already a second home
The Census Bureau counts 851 of Indian Rocks Beach's 3,415 homes as vacant for seasonal, recreational or occasional use. That is 249 out of every 1,000. It ranks Indian Rocks Beach 24th of the 48 Florida cities on this site for the share of its housing stock kept for part-year use.
- Rank in the state
- 24th of 48
- Share of housing
- 249 per 1,000
- Median home value
- $738,800
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates, tables B25004, B25001, B01003 and B25077.
Nearby and comparable
Where Indian Rocks Beach sits among its neighbors
Madeira Beach, FL
Allowed by zone
1,143 seasonal homes, 286 per 1,000 housing units.
Madeira Beach short-term rental rulesSt. Pete Beach, FL
License required
2,406 seasonal homes, 286 per 1,000 housing units.
St. Pete Beach short-term rental rulesTreasure Island, FL
Allowed by zone
1,781 seasonal homes, 288 per 1,000 housing units.
Treasure Island short-term rental rulesCocoa Beach, FL
Registration required
2,242 seasonal homes, 248 per 1,000 housing units.
Cocoa Beach short-term rental rulesFAQ
Indian Rocks Beach short-term rental questions
Am I exempt if I live in the house I rent?
What inspection does Indian Rocks Beach require?
When did the rules start?
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. 10/26), Florida Department of Revenue, read on October 2, 2026
- Discretionary Sales Surtax Information for Calendar Year 2026 (DR-15DSS), Florida Department of Revenue, read on September 20, 2026
- Vacation Rental Information, City of Indian Rocks Beach, read on September 20, 2026
- Vacation Rental Ordinance 2023-02, City of Indian Rocks Beach, read on September 20, 2026
This page is not legal advice. It summarizes the official sources listed on this page as they read on October 2, 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
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Check-in instructions
The message a guest reads before getting in: access, keys, WiFi, parking, contact. English or bilingual output.