New Hanover County, NC

Short-term rental rules in Kure Beach, NC

Kure Beach sets its short-term rental line at ninety days, not thirty, and the obligation that follows is fiscal and county-level. Rent a beach house, condo or corporate apartment for less than ninety days at a time and you charge a 6% room occupancy tax, which goes to the New Hanover County Tax Department rather than to the town. The filing date is its own trap: reporting and remittance are due to the county by the fifteenth day after the reporting month, five days earlier than the twentieth most North Carolina towns use.[3]

Every rule below links to the official source it comes from, verified September 20, 2026.

Can you rent short term in Kure Beach?

State and county rules only

Seasonal homes
841
Housing units
2,137
Residents
2,466

U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates

  • City ruleNo city ordinance
  • City feeNone published
  • Tax on each staySet locally
  • Seasonal homes394 per 1,000

Kure Beach short-term rental tax

Kure Beach counts a short-term rental as any individual rental of less than ninety days, in a hotel, motel, inn, beach house, condo, corporate apartment or other such property — a far wider net than the thirty-day definition used in most towns. Rent below that threshold and you charge a 6% room occupancy tax. It goes to the New Hanover County Tax Department rather than to the town, and reporting and remittance are due to the county by the fifteenth day after the reporting month, five days earlier than the twentieth that towns collecting their own tax tend to use. Wilmington and Carolina Beach sit in the same county and carry the same rate. On the land-use side, the town's inspector handles building, zoning, flood and code enforcement work from the Office of the Building Inspector on Settlers Lane.[3]

What Kure Beach asks of you

  • The town defines short-term rentals as individual rentals of less than ninety days each, in a hotel, motel, inn, beach house, condo, corporate apartment or other such property.[3]

  • Renting a home for periods of less than ninety days at a time means charging a 6% room occupancy tax.[3]

  • That tax is remitted to the New Hanover County Tax Department, not to the town.[3]

  • Reporting and remittance are due to the county by the fifteenth day after the reporting month.[3]

  • The town's inspector handles building, zoning, flood and code enforcement work from the Office of the Building Inspector on Settlers Lane.[4]

Apply on the Kure Beach site

What North Carolina asks wherever you host

These rules apply at this address whatever the city decides.

  • A North Carolina city may not require you to register a rental property, nor to obtain a permit under its housing or minimum housing codes in order to rent it: G.S. 160D-1207(c) preempts both, and the Court of Appeals enforced that in Schroeder v. City of Wilmington.[1]

  • What survives is zoning. The court upheld restricting whole-house lodging to named districts, parking requirements, limits on large events, insurance conditions and posted safety information.[1]

  • Renting a private residence or cottage carries the 4.75% state sales tax plus applicable local and transit rates, and any local occupancy tax a city or county has imposed. A stay of ninety continuous days or more to the same person is outside the tax.[2]

All North Carolina short-term rental laws

What a guest pays on top of your nightly rate in Kure Beach

Each layer is set by a different authority, and not all of them are collected by the platform.

Short-term rental tax layers in Kure Beach
LayerRateRemitted to
North Carolina state sales tax[2]4.75%The state revenue department
Local and transit sales tax[2]Not publishedThe state revenue department
New Hanover County room occupancy tax[3]6%The city

The 6% goes to the county rather than the town, and the deadline is the fifteenth of the following month. Wilmington and Carolina Beach sit in the same county and carry the same rate.[3]

How short-term rental taxes work for US hosts

What the census counts

How much of Kure Beach is already a second home

The Census Bureau counts 841 of Kure Beach's 2,137 homes as vacant for seasonal, recreational or occasional use — 394 out of every 1,000. That ranks Kure Beach 4th of the 13 North Carolina cities on this site for the share of its housing stock kept for part-year use.

Rank in the state
4th of 13
Share of housing
394 per 1,000
Median home value
$735,100

U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates, tables B25004, B25001, B01003 and B25077.

Nearby and comparable

Where Kure Beach sits among its neighbors

Carolina Beach, NC

Registration required

2,337 seasonal homes, 373 per 1,000 housing units.

Rules in Carolina Beach

Wilmington, NC

Allowed by zone

1,452 seasonal homes, 23 per 1,000 housing units.

Rules in Wilmington

Oak Island, NC

Allowed by zone

4,840 seasonal homes, 448 per 1,000 housing units.

Rules in Oak Island

Lake Lure, NC

Capped

932 seasonal homes, 384 per 1,000 housing units.

Rules in Lake Lure
The state hubEvery North Carolina city on this site, in one tableState law, the tax stack and every city we cover in North Carolina, with what each one asks of a host.Open the North Carolina hub

FAQ

Kure Beach short-term rental questions

When is the Kure Beach occupancy tax due?

By the fifteenth day after the reporting month, to the New Hanover County Tax Department. That is five days earlier than the twentieth used by towns that collect their own.[3]

Is a 60-day let short term in Kure Beach?

Yes. The town counts any individual rental of less than ninety days as short term for tax purposes, which is a wider net than the thirty-day definition used elsewhere.[3]
Read nextHow to start an AirbnbThe six steps in order, starting with the permit check.Read the guide

Sources

  1. Short-Term Rental Regulations after Schroeder, Coates' Canons, UNC School of Government, read on September 20, 2026
  2. Rentals of Accommodations, Sales and Use Tax, North Carolina Department of Revenue, read on September 20, 2026
  3. Short term rentals subject to tax, Town of Kure Beach, read on September 20, 2026
  4. Development and Compliance, Town of Kure 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 September 20, 2026. Rules can change after that date, so check with the issuing office before you apply or publish a listing.

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