SHORT TERM RENTAL GUIDE for beach communities in Pinellas County attached units and single family dwellings.
Owning property on or near the beach can be a great investment especially if the real estate you purchased allows for overnight and weekly stays. Each city in Pinellas County has its own opinion of short-term rentals and how they should govern them. What follows is a short summary for the beach cities along the coast in Pinellas County. I hope you find it helpful in your search for a new home. If you need more information let us do the work for you as it will save you valuable time. Don’t see the area of interest for you just let us know and we can research for you.
Email requests to Stephen@beachwiserealestate.com, or Kristin@beachwiserealestate.com. You may also reach Kristin at 727-686-1596 or Stephen at 727-430-1995.
Definition
What is a short-term rental? A short-term rental is usually defined as renting a property on a daily or weekly basis. A long-term rental is usually considered to be something rented for 30-90 days at a time.
Typically, short term rentals are viewed as a tourist orientated commercial business which would be inconsistent with a residential neighborhood. Most cities allow short term rentals in certain zoning districts and are usually found in the transient use table related to the applicable zoning districts. Some cities like Indian Rocks Beach have no restrictions in any zones. Clearwater is mostly a one month minimum however it does have a handful of properties they allow to rent less than a month at a time. Important to note that in most cases even with the establishment of these authorized zones if the parcel is located within an HOA or a deed restricted community, they may have deed restrictions that restrict long-term rentals which would hold higher jurisdiction over city zoning requirements. The Beachwise team are local experts on short term rental investments, and we recommend consulting with one of us before going under contract.
Clearwater Beach
The city of Clearwater Beach is a 1-month minimum with some exceptions. There are approximately 30 properties (condos/townhomes) in the 33767 area that allow short term rentals. For a list of these 30 properties, you can email Stephen@beachwiserealestate.com OR text/call Stephen at 727-430-1995 for personal assistance.
St. Pete Beach
The city of St. Pete is a 1 month minimum with some exceptions. Short term rentals of less than one month at a time are only permitted in a few of the districts as determined in the land development code. For immediate assistance in obtaining a copy of the zoning map you can email Stephen@beachwiserealestate.com or contact the city zoning department direct. In addition, rentals of one month or more in single family properties do not require a business tax license.
Belleair
The city of Belleair is a 7-month minimum. Residential rental properties must be leased or rented to each tenant for a minimum seven‐month term; and there shall be no more than two separate tenancies at any residential property during any 12‐month period. (Ord. No. 466, § 5, 8‐4‐09)
Belleair Beach
The city of Belleair Beach is a 3-month minimum. Sec. 94‐213. ‐ Rentals. (a) Within RL district II, residential homes may be rented, leased, or otherwise occupied through a rental agreement with the registered owner(s) on a periodic basis from time to time for not less than a three‐month occupancy period. (Ord. No. 466, § 5, 8‐4‐09)
Belleair Bluffs
The city of Belleair Bluffs is a 3-month minimum. Sec. 102‐216. ‐ Duration of lease; maximum tenancies per year. Residential rental properties must be leased or rented to each tenant for a minimum three‐month term.
Dunedin
The city of Dunedin is 3-month minimum in residential zoning districts with some exceptions. In order to verify if a zoning district allows short-term rentals, vacation rentals, and other transient uses you will need to utilize the resources the city provides online. I will give the instructions below however if you would like to save time you may always contact The Beachwise Team and let us do the work for you. Email stephen@beachwiserealestate.com or call 727-430-1995 for personal assistance.
(1) Please utilize this link first to verify the zoning information for a parcel : https://dunedin-gis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=5590c8f613394a9c99b83960b839ef5c . Once you have accessed the webpage, hit the drop down layer list on the City of Dunedin Basemap and select both Zoning District and Land Use Current; this will give you the zoning and the land use information for the parcel. After you have selected the drop-down items from the layer list you may type in a City of Dunedin address into the search bar; this should populate the zoning and land use related to your search.
(2) Once you have the zoning information available on the subject parcel, please utilize the Transient Use Table by Zoning District to verify if the zoning district permits or prohibits short-term rentals or other transient uses; see attached.
Gulfport
Daily rentals are allowed in most of Gulfport. Some restrictions are in 49th Street Redevelopment Master Overlay District (49th MOD) and Waterfront Redevelopment District (WRD). Rentals in these districts shall be daily, only. The maximum stay for an individual guest shall be thirty (30) days in a twelve‐month period.
Indian Rocks Beach and Indian Shores
The cities of Indian Rocks and Indian Shores are definitely investor friendly. Daily and weekly rentals are allowed in all zones. There are no restrictions to date. http://www.indian-rocks-beach.com/city_departments.php. https://www.myindianshores.com/
Madeira Beach
Daily rentals are permitted in R1 and R2 zone which fortunately is most of the city. Zone maps can be obtained from the city of Madeira Beach, or you may contact Kristin or Stephen at Beachwise Real Estate to confirm if your property of interest is in a zone that allows short term rentals. (Ord. No. 2015-13, § 1, 11-10-15) https://madeirabeachfl.gov/code-enforcement/
Redington Beach
The city of Redington Beach is a 6-month minimum. It does not allow short term rentals for single family homes; however, it does not enforce the ordinance. In 2008 the former city attorney mistakenly told the commission the city did not need to take the ordinance to referendum to become law. After a homeowner sued the city in 2013 challenging the constitutionality of the ordinance, and ultimately settled on terms allowing them to rent under certain conditions, current town attorney Jay Daigneault advised officials not to enforce the ban to avoid future costly lawsuits. The ordinance says minimum rental period is 181 days.
Here is the actual language of the ordinance:
(2d)Short-term rentals in District 2 and District 3 (excluding exceptions noted in code section 3(a)) are hereby prohibited and shall be subject to the following:(A)Short-term rentals of single-family dwellings of less than 181 days constitutes a transient use and shall be prohibited in District 2 and District 3 (excluding exceptions noted in code section 3(a)).(B)Property owners who rent their properties (located in District 2 and District 3) for less than 181 days shall be subject to penalties as set out in section 1-14 of Appendix A, and the Town of Redington Beach shall have authority to impose such penalty.
https://library.municode.com/fl/redington_beach/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTIICOOR_APXAZO_S3PEBUUS
North Redington Beach
North Redington Beach does not allow any rental of less than 90 days in any residential zoning districts.
Treasure Island
The city of Treasure Island allows for daily or weekly rentals in all zones. Any rental shall be considered a tourist dwelling.
Seminole
The city of Seminole is a 1-month rental minimum. Transient accommodation uses (short term rentals) are not a listed permitted use within the residential plan categories or residential zoning districts.
Tarpon Springs
Short term rentals are allowed in the approved zones. If property is not in a authorized short term rental zone you can rent the home long term for 6 weeks or more. Link to approved zones: https://gis.ctsfl.us/portal/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=9596539ae16744b4af44d320f190c791
Thank you for your interest in short term rental properties here in the Pinellas County area. We are very familiar with the intricacies of using an investment property as an income producer and we would love to share our expertise with you. We are available anytime if you would like personal assistance. We look forward to speaking to you soon.
Kristin Vincelli, 727-686-1596, Kristin@beachwiserealestate.com
Tom Smith, 727-776-3375, Tom@beachwiserealestate.com
Vivian Smith, 727-688-7377, Vivian@beachwiserealestate.com
Stephen Vincelli, 727-430-1995, Stephen@beachwiserealestate.com
www.beachwiserealestate.com
www.homesforsaleinclearwaterbeach.com
