Short-Term Rentals Inside Austin City Limits

An Austin home rented for fewer than 30 straight days is a short-term rental, or STR. It needs a city license. A Travis County address alone does not tell you which rules apply. Check that the home is in Austin. Under the 2025 ordinance, a license lasts two years.

Site rules matter too. Austin usually allows no more than two STR units on one site. It also has a 1,000-foot spacing rule for extra STR sites. The host must name a local contact in the five-county Austin area. That person must be able to respond within two hours. Noise rules still apply.

Since July 1, 2026, booking sites must collect a valid Austin license number. They must remove a listing with a license Austin has marked invalid. The city STR page has the live fee, tax steps, application, and rules for the address.