Short-Term Rental Regulations
Rental Scale-Up’s guide to the latest short-term rental regulations impacting property managers. This category tracks new rules from cities, regions, and countries, covering registration limits, primary residence caps, tax enforcement, zoning changes, and licensing updates. We break down what each policy means for property managers, what’s changing, and what action you need to take.
Regulation remains a top concern: PriceLabs’ Global Property Manager Report 2026 found 62% of operators worry about regulatory change, rising to 68% in Europe and 66% in LatAm.
From compliance risks to shifting business models, our regulatory coverage helps vacation rental pros stay legal, competitive, and prepared for what’s next.
Porto Gets Airbnb Portal, Pitkin County Supply Shrinks 29%, EU Adopts Overtourism Strategy
Airbnb has given the Porto City Council a dedicated digital portal to monitor short-term rental activity and request listing removals. In the US, an Aspen Journalism analysis shows licensed short-term rental supply in Pitkin County has fallen 29% over three years (and 62% from pre-regulation levels), driven by strict caps and non-transferability rules; across the city of Aspen and the county combined, active permits are down about 9% since 2023. In Europe, the full European Parliament has adopted a non-binding resolution to curb overtourism by steering travelers away from major hubs toward rural and remote areas.
Austin Enforces Platform Verification, BC Touts Rent Drops, Scottsdale Bans Event Centers
As of July 1, Austin requires platforms like Airbnb and Vrbo to display valid short-term rental licenses and remove unlicensed listings within 10 days of a city request. The British Columbia government reported a 5.3% year-over-year drop in provincial asking rents and an 18.5% drop in Vancouver purpose-built rental rents from their 2023 peak, crediting strict short-term rental regulations. In Arizona, the Scottsdale City Council passed Ordinance No. 4719, granting police the authority to shut down short-term rentals operating as unpermitted "event centers".
Salt Lake City Activates Licensing, Malaga Freezes New Permits, Byron Bay Listings Drop 15%
Salt Lake City activated its first formal short-term rental licensing framework on July 1, enforcing a 200-night annual cap and a two-night minimum stay. The Malaga City Council approved new planning hurdles on July 6, stripping automatic approvals for tourist accommodation on residential land and requiring operators to prove a "wider public benefit." A new UNSW roundup cites a 15% drop in short-term listings in Byron Bay, Australia, following its 60-day cap — though UNSW itself cautions it's too early to say whether the caps are working, and a separate industry-commissioned study reached a more skeptical conclusion.
Mexico City Enforces Registration, England Delays Planning Class, Cleveland Caps Density
TL;DR: Mexico City's mandatory digital registration deadline for short-term rentals officially expired on June 21. Hosts and platforms must now secure valid folios or face immediate operational blocks. In the UK, England delayed the implementation of its highly anticipated "C5" planning use class and national registration scheme, leaving operators in regulatory limbo. Cleveland City Council approved a comprehensive ordinance on June 1 that takes effect in late November. The new law introduces a strict 10% density cap per block or building alongside fines up to $5,000 for unlicensed operation.
Chicago Sues Airbnb, Kelowna Gets Provincial Exemption, Ireland Clarifies Planning Rules
Chicago sued Airbnb itself on June 23, naming the platform alongside Slumber Stay, a host cited nearly 200 times under the Shared Housing Ordinance. British Columbia let Kelowna opt out of its principal-residence rule from June 1 to meet summer tourism demand. Ireland approved a draft planning policy that bars most new short-term lets in towns above 20,000 people, while offering long-running operators a route to regularise.
Vacation Rental Laws: Greece Targets Inherited Rentals, Spain’s Top Court Voids National Register, Park County Revises Rules
Greece has proposed a Finance Ministry bill to revoke short-term rental registration numbers (AMA) in central Athens and Thessaloniki when a property is inherited, gifted, or transferred, not only when it is sold. Spain's Supreme Court has struck down the central government's mandatory national "Single Registry for Short-Term Rentals," ruling the State lacked the competence to overlay a national register on existing regional registries and returning control to the regions. In Colorado, the Park County Board of Commissioners passed a revised Short-Term Rental Ordinance on June 9 by a 2-0 vote; it takes effect July 19, formalizing mountain-destination rules ahead of the summer peak.
Chicago Weighs Ban Renewal, Croatia Rolls Out Registry, Florence Expands Short-Term Rental Ban
Short-term rental rules moved on three fronts this week. In Chicago, the City Council's License and Consumer Protection Committee took up the renewal of a location-based short-term rental ban on June 9, while housing advocates pointed to a surge in investor-owned Airbnbs in the 20th Ward near the soon-to-open Obama Presidential Center. Croatia began rolling out a mandatory national registration number this month, with multi-unit operators now needing consent from two-thirds of building co-owners. In Italy, Florence expanded its ban on new short-term rentals to nine more neighborhoods, adding 67,780 homes to the restricted zone, days after a regional court upheld its original historic-center ban.
French Short-term rentals and the Hoguet Law: What the FNAIM Report from April 2026 Says
TL;DR: France's FNAIM clarified in April 2026 which concierge activities fall under the Hoguet Law. Managing listings, handling funds, or signing leases requires a T or G card license. Cleaning, key handover, and guest welcome do not. Operating unlicensed risks fines up to €30,000 — and up to €100,000 per unit under the Le Meur Act. The report lands as Paris enforcement hits record levels and France's national STR registration deadline takes effect.
Ireland Launches National Register, Vienna Hikes Tourist Tax, Madison AL Caps Permits
TL;DR: Ireland's Ministers confirmed the Fáilte Ireland national short-term let register will launch December 1, 2026, requiring all hosts to register by December 31. Vienna is enforcing its 90-day short-term rental cap under the amended Building Code to protect year-round housing stock, alongside a confirmed July 2026 Ortstaxe increase to 5%. The Madison, Alabama City Council scheduled a June 22 public hearing on a proposed ordinance capping short-term rentals at 190 permits; STRs currently have no legal framework in the city, making this a narrow pathway to operate legally.
Porto Voids 1,413 Registrations, South Africa Weighs National Vacation Rental Rules, Hawaii Lets Counties Phase Out Tourist Stays
TL;DR: Porto City Council is canceling 1,413 Alojamento Local registrations, roughly 13% of its active inventory, after operators failed to submit mandatory civil liability insurance proof, permanently reducing supply in the historic center. South Africa’s Department of Tourism closed public consultation on May 12 for its first national Draft Code of Good Practice for short-term rentals. In the US, Hawaii’s landmark SB 2919 officially grants counties sweeping authority to amortize and completely phase out existing short-term rentals in residential zones.
EU Short-Term Rental Data Sharing Goes Live, Australia Calls for Sweeping Reforms, US States Preempt Local Rules
TL;DR: The May 20 deadline for EU Regulation 2024/1028 has officially passed, mandating platforms like Airbnb and Booking.com to share monthly activity data via Single Digital Entry Points across all 27 Member States. In Australia, a landmark May 20 AHURI report recommended severe restrictions on converting long-term homes into short-term rentals amid skyrocketing rents. In the US, Idaho's HB 583 and Indiana's HEA 1210 go into effect July 1, imposing sweeping state-level preemption laws that strip local governments of their ability to cap short-term rental density.
Mountainside NJ Pre-empts FIFA STR Surge, Sydney Eyes Suburb-Level Airbnb Ban, France Counts Down to Declaloc Deadline
TL;DR: Mountainside Borough, New Jersey introduced an ordinance banning all short-term rentals of 30 days or less, with fines up to $2,000 per day; next council meeting May 19, driven by proximity to MetLife Stadium ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The City of Sydney Council voted unanimously on April 28 to investigate suburb-level short-term rental bans across 11 inner-city suburbs, triggered by vacancy rates falling under 3 percent. France's Declaloc national registration portal goes live May 20 under loi Le Meur, with fines up to €20,000 for false declarations.
Vancouver Rejects Airbnb’s World Cup Push, Mexico City Rethinks Its Airbnb Law, Valencia Court Voids Tourist Housing Moratorium
TL'DR: Airbnb asked British Columbia to loosen short-term rental rules ahead of the FIFA World Cup, citing a 70,000-night accommodation shortfall in Vancouver; Premier David Eby publicly rejected the proposal. Mexico City officials confirmed they are reviewing the city's "Airbnb Law" amid concerns the regulations will deter hosts ahead of an estimated 274,000 tournament nights. The Tribunal Superior de Justicia de la Comunitat Valenciana invalidated Valencia's two-year tourist housing moratorium on April 14; the Valencia City Council is studying an appeal to Spain's Supreme Court.
1 in 4 Approved NYC Airbnbs Now Operates Illegally: Approval Is Not the Finish Line
TL;DR NYC's Office of Special Enforcement now estimates 27% of approved short-term rental listings are operating outside Local Law 18's rules, up from 20% ten months ago. The gap is widening despite more inspections, more warning letters, and a $5 million lawsuit filed in April. The reason is structural. LL18 verifies registration at intake and stops there. California's SB 346 and EU Regulation 2024/1028 - both live in 2026 - reconcile platform activity against registration continuously. NYC has not built that loop.
Los Angeles Eyes Olympics Airbnb Deal, Santa Ana Court Voids Ban, Saratoga County Imposes Registry and Tax
TL;DR: Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass's budget proposal pairs two Airbnb-backed short-term rental provisions ahead of the LA28 Olympics: a temporary program allowing second-home rentals through December 31, 2028, and Airbnb pre-payment of transient occupancy tax. An Orange County judge on April 20 voided Santa Ana's 2024 short-term rental ban for skipping the environmental review CEQA requires. Saratoga County, NY voted unanimously on April 21 to impose an occupancy tax, registry, and platform data-share — the first major upstate county to enact under New York's STR framework.
Nearly €1M in Paris Airbnb Fines in Three Months: Regulation Enforcement in France Gains Momentum
In the latest France Airbnb regulations news, Paris issued nearly €1M in illegal short-term rental fines in Q1 2026 alone, backed by a new 150-person enforcement brigade. Fueled by the strict Loi Le Meur, authorities are aggressively targeting corporate landlords with doubled penalties. Crucially, starting May 20, 2026, new EU data-sharing laws will force platforms to report listing activity automatically. For property managers, this means the era of flying under the radar is officially over.
Missouri Sides With Rental Owners, Sacramento Targets Non-Resident Hosts, Alabama City Sets Hard Cap
Missouri's Senate passed SB 1066 by 30-3 on March 25 to block commercial property tax reclassification of short-term rentals — a loophole some assessors have used to triple host tax bills — with a companion House bill passing April 2. Sacramento's Planning Commission backed a primary-residence requirement on March 12 that would eliminate over 75% of the city's active permits, with a full council vote pending. Decatur, Alabama launched its first short-term rental registration programme on April 1 with a 150-unit annual cap and a 90-day grace period before fines begin.
Houston Sets the Clock, DC Opens Hosting, Industry Builds an Advocacy Fund
Houston's short-term rental ordinance is enforced and at 83% compliance, with platforms given until January 1, 2027 to delist non-compliant hosts — just after 7 FIFA World Cup matches at NRG Stadium project $370M+ in visitor spending. In Washington DC, Mayor Bowser's March 13 bill would allow renters to host legally for the first time. The Right to Rent Collaborative has embedded a $2/reservation advocacy contribution into Track Hospitality's property management software, the first time this funding model has been built directly into a reservation workflow.
Survive the EU Short-Term Rental registration Deadline: What Managers Must Do Next
TL;DR: EU Regulation 2024/1028 standardizes short-term rental enforcement by May 20, 2026, though local rollouts vary. Here is a 4-phase operational guidebook professional property managers need to audit their PMS data, update owner liability contracts, and survive the new machine-to-machine SDEP audits.
The May 20 EU Data Deadline: Should Property Managers Expect Mass Delistings?
TL;DR: EU Regulation 2024/1028 ends the "honor system" for short-term rentals by forcing platforms to share monthly activity data with local governments. While the official compliance deadline is May 20, 2026, enforcement is already live in countries like Spain. To prevent automated delistings—which platforms must execute within 10 days of an order—property managers must urgently audit their PMS-to-OTA data parity and update owner contracts to shift financial liability for non-compliance.
