For purposes of this article short-terms rentals (STRs) shall mean rental of a residential premises, or portion thereof, for lodging accommodations to occupants for a period of less than thirty (30) consecutive days.
(Ordinance 2022-002 adopted 6/14/22)
(a) 
Location standards.
Short-term rentals must meet all applicable zoning requirements applicable to the then prevailing zoning district, if any, in which it is located.
(b) 
Purpose.
This article is adopted to promote the public health, safety, and general welfare within the city by providing neighborhood sustainability and preserving property values. Having current and reliable information about the owners of short-term rentals will allow the city to provide those owners with timely information on the condition of their properties and emergency contact information, to ensure collection of hotel and motel occupancy taxes, to the extent applicable, to protect the health and safety of guests of short-term rentals and to aid in enforcement of applicable ordinances and laws. By requiring the registration of short-term rental properties, the city council seeks to protect property values and to prevent property damage within the city limits.
(1) 
The provisions of these requirements shall apply to all existing and future residential properties, both primary and accessory structures, and any portions thereof.
(2) 
An owner who desires to use its premises as a short-term rental must have a valid, active short-term rental permit from the city prior to using, allowing the use of, or advertising the use of said premises as a short-term rental.
(c) 
Registration application.
Except as provided in this article, every complete application for a short-term rental permit shall include the following information with such detail and in a form approved by the city manager:
(1) 
The name, address, contact information and authenticated signature for the owner of the premises;
(2) 
The name, address and contact information of the operator, agent if any, and designated local responsible party as required in subsection (e) below;
(3) 
The city registration number for hotel occupancy tax;
(4) 
A plot plan of the premises identifying the location of parking spaces to be used in conjunction with the short-term rental;
(5) 
A dimensioned floor plan of the proposed short-term rental identifying bedrooms, other living spaces and emergency evacuation routes;
(6) 
Proof of insurance as required in subsection (f) below;
(7) 
The name and contact information for the property owner’s association or sub-association if any, of which the premises is covered by the dedicatory instruments;
(8) 
A copy of the proposed host rules for the short-term rental;
(9) 
Such certifications deemed necessary and proper to ensure compliance with the requirement of this article;
(10) 
A depiction of the floor plan that identifies sleeping areas, proposed maximum number of guests, evacuation routes and location of all fire extinguishers and smoke detectors;
(11) 
The guest safety information;
(12) 
A sworn statement that the owner has met and will continue to comply with all requirements of this article including, but not limited to, obtaining annual independent inspections of required fire extinguishers; and
(13) 
Other information as may be required by the city manager.
(d) 
Registration does not supersede.
This registration shall not supersede any property specific restrictions against short-term rentals that may exist under law, agreement, lease, covenant, or deed restriction.
(e) 
Responsible local party.
An owner must designate the name and contact information of a local responsible party who can be contacted regarding immediate concerns and complaints from the public. Said individual must be available to be reached in person or by phone at all times while occupants are on the premises of a short-term rental. If called, a local responsible party must be able to and shall be present at the premises within one (1) hour of a call from the city. A local responsible party must be authorized to make decisions regarding the premises and its occupants. A local responsible party may be required to, and shall not refuse to, accept service of citation for any violations on the premises. Acceptance of service shall not act to release owner of any liability under this article.
(f) 
Insurance.
It shall be unlawful for the owner of premises operating as a short-term rental to operate without host protection or other liability insurance commensurate with the operations of the short-term rental that provides coverage of up to one million dollars ($1,000,000.00) per occurrence. A certificate of insurance must be on file with the city. Proof of insurance shall be required at the time of application and notice of cancellation of insurance must be made to the city within 30 days.
(g) 
Inspection.
No permit or renewal permit shall be approved for a short-term rental until the city has inspected the premises and found the premises to be in compliance with minimum health and safety requirements for use and occupancy. If a premises fails to pass an inspection, a reinspection fee may be charged for each subsequent inspection.
(h) 
Fees.
Fees will be charged to reimburse the city for all costs associated with the administration of this article as follows:
(1) 
Original application: $150.00 per bedroom.
(2) 
Annual renewal of registration: $100.00 per bedroom.
(3) 
Reinspection $100.00 per bedroom.
(i) 
Hotel motel tax and occupancy reports.
It shall be unlawful for an owner of premises used for a short-term rental to fail to pay hotel occupancy taxes required under state law and the taxation requirements of the city. Each calendar quarter the owner shall remit to the city a report listing the dates that short-term rentals occurred on the property and accounting for all occupants who rented the premises and the hotel occupancy taxes paid therefore for the previous quarter. Upon request of the city, the owner of a premises used as a short-term rental shall within 5 business days from the request provide an accounting of all occupants who rented the premises and the hotel occupancy taxes paid therefor. It shall be unlawful for a person to fail to provide said information requested in a timely manner.
(j) 
Permit nontransferable.
A short-term rental permit is nontransferable and shall not be assigned nor transferred to another person or entity or property. Any attempt to transfer a permit or attempt to use another person’s permit shall be grounds for revocation of said permit.
(k) 
Occupancy.
It shall be unlawful for an owner or person to rent, allow, provide, or advertise for more than two (2) persons per bedroom, when using the premises as a short-term rental.
(1) 
Regardless of the number of bedrooms at the premises, it shall be unlawful:
(A) 
For more than twelve (12) persons (including children), to occupy a short-term rental at any one time; or
(B) 
For the owner or operator to allow, suffer or permit the number of occupants living, sleeping within or possessing a short-term rental to exceed the maximum occupancy shown on the short-term rental permit or renewal permit.
(2) 
A visual inspection of more than twelve (12) persons by a city employee at the premises is prima facie evidence of and shall be probable cause to issue a citation for a violation of this article.
(l) 
Parking.
The maximum number of motor vehicles allowed at a short-term rental shall be limited to the number of available off-street parking spaces on the premises. It shall be unlawful for an owner or person to permit, allow or advise occupants to park more vehicles on the premises than the available off-street parking spaces, or to suffer or allow parking of vehicles on an unimproved surface. It shall be unlawful for an occupant of a short-term rental, or an owner thereof to allow an occupant, to park or occupy a motor home, recreational vehicle, boat, commercial vehicle, or otherwise prohibited motor vehicle on the premises of a short-term rental or on a residential street near a short-term rental. It shall be unlawful for an owner or person to pave or otherwise cover pervious soil to create additional on-premises parking without prior approval from the city.
(m) 
Minimum rental.
It shall be unlawful for an owner to rent or lease a short-term rental for a period of less than 24 hours.
(n) 
Special events and illegal activities.
It shall be unlawful for an owner or occupant of a short-term rental to advertise or promote a special event, or allow the advertising and promotion of a special event (e.g. banquet, wedding, reception, reunion, bachelor or bachelorette party, concert, or any similar activity that would assemble large numbers of invitees) to be held on the premises. It shall be unlawful for an owner or occupant to allow, suffer or permit a special event as described to be held on the premises without obtaining a special event permit from the city. It shall be unlawful for an owner or occupant of a short-term rental to allow, suffer or permit an illegal activity to take place within the premises, or to permit the use of a short-term rental to promote activities that are illegal, or for the purpose of temporary or transition housing for registered sex offenders, or for selling illegal drugs, selling alcohol, or conducting another activity that requires a permit or license under the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Code, or operating as a sexually oriented business, or for rental periods of less than 24 hours.
(o) 
Campers, trailers and camping.
It shall be unlawful for an owner or occupant of a short-term rental to allow, suffer or permit the use or occupancy of tents, hammocks, recreational/camper vehicles or other vehicles, on the premises of a short-term rental.
(p) 
Trash.
It shall be unlawful for an owner or occupant to place, or allow to be placed, trash on the premises before 7:00 p.m. the evening prior to scheduled trash pickup or on a day not scheduled for pickup by the city, or its authorized solid waste transportation vendor.
(q) 
Notice to occupants.
An owner or person operating a short-term rental shall provide a notice of instructions (also known as “host rules”) to occupants staying at the premises in a form developed by the city. The notice shall instruct the occupants as to all applicable city regulations pertaining to short-term rentals. These include, but are not limited to, occupancy restrictions, limits on parking, trash pickup, and the prohibition of special events or violations of the city’s noise ordinance.
(r) 
Permit display and online listing requirement.
(1) 
A copy of the approved short-term rental permit shall be posted at a conspicuous location inside the front entrance(s) to the short-term rental. A lodging provider must provide its current city-issued license or permit number to any short-term rental listing service used by the lodging provider. A short-term rental listing service may not market, advertise, book, or reserve a short-term rental in the city for any person without displaying the current license or permit number on the listing at all times.
(2) 
The listing of a short-term rental by any person without displaying a current city license or permit number assigned to the short-term rental is a class C misdemeanor punishable in accordance with subsection (x) and such conduct subjects the lodging provider to a revocation of its license after a hearing with the city administrator or his designee.
(s) 
Amplified sound.
Per the city’s noise ordinance, it shall be unlawful for an owner or occupant of a short-term rental to use or allow the use of amplified sound equipment that produces sound audible beyond the property line of the premises between 9:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. from Sunday evening through Friday morning, between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. from Friday evening through Sunday morning and holidays in such a manner as be plainly audible at a distance of fifty feet (50') from the location of such set, instrument, or device.
(t) 
Advertising and permit number requirement.
It shall be unlawful for an owner or person to advertise a short-term rental in any medium, including but not limited to newspaper, magazine, brochure, website, or mobile application without including the current permit number assigned by the city.
(u) 
Unauthorized use of permit number.
It shall be unlawful for an owner or person to use, advertise or promote or allow the use, advertisement or promotion of a short-term rental using a permit number not assigned to the owner or person, or to a different address, or to a different dwelling unit.
(v) 
Revocation of permit.
(1) 
Any permit issued hereunder may be revoked by the city if the permit holder has:
(A) 
Received more than two citations for violations of this article or any other provision of the city’s code within the preceding 12-month time period;
(B) 
Failed or refused to comply with an express condition of the permit and remains in noncompliance ten (10) days after being notified in writing of such noncompliance;
(C) 
Knowingly made a false statement in the application; or
(D) 
Otherwise became disqualified for the issuance of a permit under the terms of this article.
(2) 
Notice.
Notice of the revocation shall be given to the permit holder in writing, with the reasons for the revocation specified in the notice, served either by personal service or by certified United States mail to their last known address. The revocation shall become effective the day following personal service or if mailed, three (3) days from the date of mailing.
(3) 
Appeal hearing.
The permit holder shall have ten (10) days from the date of such revocation in which to file notice with the city of their appeal from the order revoking said permit. The city council shall provide for a hearing on the appeal in accordance with the provisions of this article.
(4) 
One-year waiting period.
In the event an owner’s short-term rental permit is revoked by the city, no second or additional permit shall be issued for a short-term rental on the premises for one year from the date such permit was revoked.
(w) 
Short-term rental unlawful without permit.
It shall be unlawful for any owner person, firm, corporation, agent or employee to rent, lease, advertise, or otherwise permit or allow any residential premises to be operated or used as an unpermitted short-term rental. Provided however, that it shall be an affirmative defense to a violation of this article that the occupant is a party to the sale of the premises and was occupying the premises pursuant to a written post-closing occupancy agreement.
(x) 
Penalties and enforcement.
A person, occupant, firm, corporation, agent or employee who violates any provision of this article by performing an act prohibited or by failing to perform an act required is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be fined an amount not to exceed two thousand dollars and no cents ($2,000.00). Each day on which a violation exists or continues to exist shall be a separate offense.
(Ordinance 2022-002 adopted 6/14/22; Ordinance 2025-011 adopted 6/10/2025)
The following definitions shall apply in this article, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
Lodging provider.
Any person or company owning, operating, managing, or controlling a hotel in the city, including but not limited to the owner or proprietor of such premises, Short-Term Rental Listing Service, lessee, sub-lessee, lender in possession or any other person operating such hotel and who is subject to collecting and remitting the tax.
Operating or operation.
Shall have the meaning defined in section 2.08.063 of the City's Code of Ordinances.
Operator.
Any person, entity, or agent who engages in, manages, controls, or is responsible for the operation of a hotel, including a short-term rental, whether directly or indirectly.
Short-term rental listing service.
A person, company or other legal entity that participates in the short-term rental business by facilitating and/or collecting a fee for booking services through which a person may offer short-term rentals to potential guests. Short-term rental listing services usually, though not necessarily, provide booking services through an online platform that allows a person to advertise the premises through a website or mobile application provided by the short-term rental listing service and the short-term rental listing service.
Short-term rental.
(a) 
A dwelling that is:
(1) 
Used or designed to be used as a place where a person may reside, including a single-family dwelling, garage apartment, guest house or a unit in a multi-unit building, including an apartment, condominium, cooperative or timeshare;
(2) 
Rented wholly or partly for a fee and for a period of less than 30 consecutive days; or
(3) 
A hotel as defined by section 2.08.063.
(b) 
The term "short-term rental" does not include a premises that is used for a nonresidential purpose, including an educational, health care, retail, restaurant, banquet space or event center purpose or another similar use.
(Ordinance 2025-011 adopted 6/10/2025)
Every person owning, operating, managing, or controlling any short-term rental located within the city limits or ETJ, including a lodging provider, shall collect the tax imposed in article 2.08, division 3, hotel occupancy tax.
(Ordinance 2025-011 adopted 6/10/2025)