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/STAY · LOCAL RULES · HOLMES BEACH, FL

Holmes Beach vacation rental rules

Every rental in the City of Holmes Beach needs a city vacation rental certificate, on top of Florida's state license. The city spells out a one-page notice to post inside, and the quiet-hours statement it has to carry, word for word.

Checked on Nov 11 2026 against the official pages below

The three things to know

PERMIT

A vacation rental certificate, good for two years: $780 to start and $780 to renew, inspection included. You also need a Florida DBPR license, a 24-hour local contact and tourist tax registration. Guests: 6, or 2 per bedroom, whichever is more.

DOOR NOTICE

One page (or a tabbed notebook) with the agent or owner's name, address and phone, the most overnight guests, the most vehicles, quiet hours with the city's own statement, trash, recycling and yard waste days, sea turtle rules if they apply, and the nearest hospital and urgent care. An evacuation map goes by two outside doors.

TAX

13% total: Manatee County's 6% tourist development tax, paid to the county Tax Collector, plus 7% Florida sales tax to the state. The Tax Collector says it isn't contracted with the big platforms for its 6%, so owners file it themselves.

Print the door notice

This is the page the city asks for in sec. 4-16. The quiet-hours statement prints exactly as the code writes it. Fill the rest; anything left empty prints as a line to write on. Print the building evacuation map separately for the main entrance and one other outside door.

Type what you know. Anything left empty prints as a line to write on, so it works as a blank form too. What you type stays on this phone.

HOLMES BEACH VACATION RENTAL

Important information and emergency numbers

Posted as required by Holmes Beach City Code sec. 4-16.

    Holmes Beach City Code sec. 4-16. Notice made free at headedin.com/stay/rules/holmes-beach/

    Prints on one letter page in most cases. Post it in plain sight, or put it first in a notebook whose cover says "important information and emergency numbers".

    What the rules say

    Who needs the certificate
    "No vacation rental unit shall either be rented or offered for rent within the city without a valid vacation rental certificate."Sec. 4-5(a)
    • The city says a certificate is needed for every rental property in the city; sec. 4-21 covers stays of 30 days or more too.
    • To apply: a 24-hour local emergency contact, your Florida DBPR license, a state resale certificate, and a statement that tourist tax is collected (sec. 4-5). Apply through the city's online portal, linked from the city's page.
    • Inspection: book it within 30 days of applying; a failed one gives you 30 days to fix it (sec. 4-5(g)).
    • Fees (city page): $780 to start, $780 every two years to renew; reinspections $50 and $75.
    • Renew between 60 and 30 days before it runs out, or it lapses (sec. 4-5).
    • New owner or agent: tell the city within 15 business days (sec. 4-8).
    What has to be posted
    "In each vacation rental unit, the following information shall be either posted in a conspicuous place on a single page, or in a tabbed notebook"Sec. 4-16(a)
    1. The agent's or owner's name, address and phone.
    2. The most overnight guests.
    3. Quiet hours, 10 p.m. to 7 a.m., the city's noise limits, and the city's good-neighbor statement word for word.
    4. The most vehicles that can park there.
    5. Days and times for trash, recycling and yard waste.
    6. Sea turtle nesting season and lighting rules, if they apply.
    7. Where the nearest hospital and urgent care are, with phone numbers.

    A notebook's cover must say "important information and emergency numbers" (sec. 4-16(b)). A building evacuation map, at least letter size, goes at the main entrance and one other outside door (sec. 4-16(c)).

    Guests, parking, ads and minimum stays
    • Guests: "shall not exceed six persons or two persons per bedroom, whichever is greater" (sec. 4-9). A bedroom is at least 70 square feet with a closet.
    • Parking: one on-site space per bedroom.
    • Ads show the most guests, parking, the minimum stay and the certificate number, plus the good-neighbor statement (sec. 4-14).
    • Minimum stay (city page): 30 days in R-1 and R-1AA zones; 7 days in R-2, R-3 and R-4; daily in A-1.
    • Safety gear (sec. 4-6): smoke and CO alarms, a 2A:10B:C extinguisher on each floor, and a landline that can call 911.
    • Questions: city Code Compliance, (941) 932-5807.
    Taxes
    • Manatee County tourist development tax, 6%, filed with the county Tax Collector. It says it is "not contracted with Airbnb, VRBO, Evolve", so owners collect and file it.
    • Florida sales tax to the Department of Revenue; the Tax Collector puts the total at 13% on rentals of six months or less.
    • The Tax Collector moves to a new filing system: the old one closes Nov 25 2026, the new one opens Dec 1 2026.

    House rules go in your listing

    For bookings made from Nov 20 2026, Airbnb wants every house rule in the listing itself; signs in the house can only repeat them. This notice only carries what Holmes Beach requires, so it adds no new rules. Put quiet hours, parking and the rest in your listing first.

    Official sources, read Nov 11 2026

    Plain-words summary, not legal advice. Rules and fees change, and the official page always wins. Checked Nov 11 2026.

    Help us get it right

    Host in Holmes Beach? If a rule, fee or form here has changed, or we missed something, tell us. We check every note against the official source before we change a page, and we put the new checked date on it.

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