St. Pete Beach, FL short-term rental license
Short-term renting in St. Pete Beach starts with a business tax license for transient lodging, which the city reviews before issuing. Monthly rentals of a house fall outside it.[6]
Every rule below links to the official source it comes from, verified October 2, 2026.
Can you rent short term in St. Pete Beach?
Get a license first
What you apply for: Business tax license for transient lodging
- Seasonal homes
- 2,406
- Housing units
- 8,400
- Residents
- 8,805
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates
- City ruleLicense required
- City feeNone published
- Tax on each stay13%
- Seasonal homes286 per 1,000
St. Pete Beach short-term rental rules
St. Pete Beach licenses permanent transient lodging through a business tax license. Zoning and the Fire Marshal both sign off before the license is issued, which is where the city does its filtering. The threshold matters too: a single-family property rented for one month or more does not require a business tax license at all. That puts the whole regime on stays under a month. Enforcement is evidence-based rather than complaint-only. Code officers review listings, occupancy records and property activity to confirm compliance, and issue a notice of violation from what they find. The city directs complaints about short-term and vacation rentals to its own code enforcement office. It also directs them to the state Department of Business and Professional Regulation.[6]
What St. Pete Beach asks of you
Permanent transient lodging uses require a business tax license, reviewed by both Zoning and the Fire Marshal before it is issued.[6]
Rentals of one month or more in single-family properties do not require a business tax license.[6]
Code officers review listings, occupancy records and property activity to confirm compliance, and issue a notice of violation where they find one.[6]
The city directs complaints about short-term and vacation rentals to the state Department of Business and Professional Regulation as well as to its own code enforcement office.[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 St. Pete 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 6% Pinellas tourist development tax is collected by the county, not the city, and runs alongside the 1% county surtax the Department of Revenue collects with the state tax.[4]
What the census counts
How much of St. Pete Beach is already a second home
The Census Bureau counts 2,406 of St. Pete Beach's 8,400 homes as vacant for seasonal, recreational or occasional use. That is 286 out of every 1,000. It ranks St. Pete Beach 20th of the 48 Florida cities on this site for the share of its housing stock kept for part-year use.
- Rank in the state
- 20th of 48
- Share of housing
- 286 per 1,000
- Median home value
- $675,700
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates, tables B25004, B25001, B01003 and B25077.
Nearby and comparable
Where St. Pete Beach sits among its neighbors
Treasure Island, FL
Allowed by zone
1,781 seasonal homes, 288 per 1,000 housing units.
Treasure Island short-term rental rulesMadeira Beach, FL
Allowed by zone
1,143 seasonal homes, 286 per 1,000 housing units.
Madeira Beach short-term rental rulesIndian Rocks Beach, FL
Registration required
851 seasonal homes, 249 per 1,000 housing units.
Indian Rocks Beach short-term rental rulesIndian Shores, FL
No city ordinance
1,315 seasonal homes, 512 per 1,000 housing units.
Indian Shores short-term rental rulesFAQ
St. Pete Beach short-term rental questions
Does a monthly rental need a license in St. Pete Beach?
Who reviews the license application?
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
- Short Term Rental Rules and Regulations, City of St. Pete 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
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 host fee calculator
What Airbnb takes on a booking under the 15.5% host-only fee or the old split fee, what the guest pays on top, and the payout that reaches you.
Airbnb house rules
Generate a complete PDF house rules document for your property: rules, schedule, amenities, emergency contacts.
Check-in instructions
The message a guest reads before getting in: access, keys, WiFi, parking, contact. English or bilingual output.