Short-Term Rental permits across Texas
Where each city draws the line on short-term rental work. Sort any column — useful if you build across several towns and need to know where the rules change.
Cities compared
28
Always need one
13
Depends on size
1
| Where the line falls | Fee | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houston | 2,390,125 | Yes | You need a short-term rental certificate of registration … | — |
| San Antonio | 1,526,656 | Yes | No short-term rental may operate in San Antonio without a… | — |
| Austin | 993,588 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| El Paso | 681,723 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Corpus Christi | 317,317 | Yes | Operating a short-term or vacation rental needs a short-t… | — |
| Plano | 293,286 | Depends | Plano prohibits short-term rentals of premises within the… | — |
| Laredo | 261,260 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| McKinney | 227,526 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Grand Prairie | 207,331 | Yes | Operating a short-term or vacation rental needs a valid, … | — |
| Amarillo | 203,729 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Brownsville | 191,967 | Yes | Operating a short-term or vacation rental needs a valid s… | — |
| Denton | 165,998 | Yes | Operating a short-term rental needs a short-term rental r… | — |
| Killeen | 160,616 | Yes | You need a short-term rental permit to operate a vacation… | The code does not print a dollar amount. The city sets the … |
| Mesquite | 150,140 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Pasadena | 149,617 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Waco | 146,608 | Yes | You need a city license before you operate a short-term o… | — |
| Midland | 143,687 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Lewisville | 135,983 | Yes | Operating a short-term or vacation rental needs a short-t… | Fees are set by the city fee schedule (Sec. 2-201). |
| Round Rock | 135,359 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Abilene | 130,501 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Pearland | 129,620 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| College Station | 128,023 | Yes | Anyone operating a short-term rental must apply for and h… | A short-term rental permit and fee are required; see Sec. 1… |
| League City | 118,456 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Richardson | 118,221 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | — |
| New Braunfels | 116,477 | Yes | You need a short term rental permit in every zoning distr… | Appendix D lists a short-term rental annual inspection fee,… |
| Conroe | 114,581 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Allen | 113,746 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | — |
| Sugar Land | 109,851 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
“Unconfirmed” means the city's code doesn't state the rule plainly enough to publish. Those city pages link straight to the ordinance section instead.
Why neighboring cities disagree
Every city starts from a model code and then edits it. One town raises the shed cutoff, the next lowers the fence height, a third exempts the structure where its neighbor only exempts repairs to it. None of that is visible from a national article — you have to read each ordinance, which is what these pages do.