Is short-term rental legal in Houston, TX?
Houston — famously the largest US city with no zoning — adopted its FIRST short-term rental registration effective January 1, 2026. Registration, not permission: no caps, no primary-residence rule, no zoning bans to clear.
Rules checked October 2026
Run the Houston verdict on your facts
| What counts as a short-term rental | Houston — famously the largest US city with no zoning — adopted its FIRST short-term rental registration effective January 1, 2026. Registration, not permission: no caps, no primary-residence rule, no zoning bans to clear. |
|---|---|
| Permit / license | STR Registration Certificate — issued by City of Houston (Administration & Regulatory Affairs) |
| Fee | $275 registration fee |
| Renewal | Annual renewal |
| Primary-residence rule | None. |
| Whole-home rental | Whole-home and hosted rentals both register on the same terms. |
| Night cap | — |
| Guests / occupancy | Standard codes apply |
| Minimum stay | None |
| Zoning | No zoning in Houston — but deed restrictions do the zoning's work privately, and the city will not warn you about yours. |
| Density / scarcity | No density cap found in the current rules |
| Fines | Operating unregistered after Jan 1, 2026 draws citations under the ordinance's penalty schedule; deed restrictions (Houston's real zoning) are enforced by neighbors and HOAs privately |
| Taxes | City hotel occupancy tax registration accompanies the STR registration; state HOT 6% on top. |
| Platform duties | Platforms must delist unregistered Houston properties under the ordinance. |
| State layer | No state preemption (the legislature has repeatedly declined). Cities regulate hard: Austin licenses, Houston registers (first regime, Jan 1 2026), Dallas's single-family ban has been litigated since 2023. Read the city layer, not the state. |
What trips hosts in Houston
- Houston's regime is months old — most 'Houston STR guide' content predates registration entirely and describes a city that no longer exists.
- In Houston the private layer (deed restrictions) is the main event; the city layer is a form.
The private layer still applies
These are the city's rules. Your HOA, condo board, lease or mortgage can say no on top of them — that layer is printed as a warning in the checker, never merged into the city's verdict.
Sources: Houston Code of Ordinances Ch. 28, Art. VI (STR registration, eff. Jan 1, 2026) · Houston ARA STR program. Rules checked October 2026.