Short Term Rental and Airbnb Loans

A short term rental loan is a business purpose loan on a non owner occupied investment property. Most clients close in an LLC, though your personal name works too in most states. Georgia and Virginia require an LLC or corporation.

Depending on the program, I use one of three approaches: a 12 month rental history for a property that already operates as a short term rental, a projection report for a new purchase without history, or the appraiser's long term market rent as a fallback. Seasonality matters. A single peak month doesn't tell the whole story, so I look at the full year.

"Airbnb loans no down payment" gets asked a lot. The plain answer is no. Every program I use requires a down payment.

Property types include single family short term rentals, condos and condotels, program by program. Association rules matter as much as the loan program does, so I check the HOA or condo documents for rental restrictions, minimum stay rules and any registration requirement before we go further.

A short term rental usually runs furnished, with its own insurance considerations, higher turnover costs and property management if you're not doing it yourself. Get a real insurance quote on the exact address before you count on the numbers.

I don't work with one lender. I compare several DSCR programs against your property, your entity and your rent, and tell you which one fits. No names, just the comparison.

A short term rental DSCR loan is for a property you rent out regularly. A second home loan, covered on vacation home loans and the snowbird page, is for a place you use yourself, and it can't be rental property under Fannie Mae's rules. Tell me how you plan to use the property and I'll point you to the right loan.

Florida Statutes §509.032(7)(b) sets the state framework: a local law can't prohibit vacation rentals or regulate how long or how often they're rented, but local rules from on or before June 1, 2011 still stand. Read the Florida statute. If a unit is rented more than three times a calendar year for under 30 days, the state requires a DBPR vacation rental license, per the DBPR licensing guide. You'll also need a Florida DOR sales tax registration and a county tourist development tax account, unless every booking goes through a platform that collects for the county.

St. Petersburg: under City Code §16.90.020.3, renting a home for less than a month more than three times in any 365 day period makes it a transient accommodation use, a hotel type use, allowed only where zoning permits it. See the Municode section.

Sarasota County (unincorporated only): UDC §124-305 and §124-76(a)(3)b.6.i allow short term rentals under 30 days as a permitted use in RMF districts on the Barrier Islands only. See the Municode sections. Check your zoning for everywhere else.

City of Naples: single family homes are rented for 30 days or longer. See the city FAQ.

City of Sarasota: a minimum stay of 7 nights and a city vacation rental registration certificate. See the city's vacation rental page.

City of Miami: single family homes and duplexes in T3 and T4-R zones are not eligible. See the city's short term rental page.

Tampa: the state license plus a Hillsborough County tourist development tax account. See the Hillsborough Tax Collector page. No city registration is required.

Can short term rental income count on a Maine DSCR loan? Yes. 1 to 4 unit programs can count short term rental income. It depends on the program. Maine has a real seasonality curve, a summer peak, a shoulder season, and a slower winter, and I look at the whole year, not just July and August. For 5 to 9 units, plan on the loan qualifying on long term rent, meaning signed leases or the appraiser's market rent. Short term rental income generally doesn't count at that size. See the DSCR hub for the full 5 to 9 unit answer.

Under Maine Revenue Services Instructional Bulletin No. 32, if you rent a place for 15 days or more in a calendar year you register with Maine Revenue Services and collect lodging tax. A unit rented fewer than 15 days a year is generally not treated as a retailer, but if a platform or agent handles the booking, it collects the tax.

Portland: every short term rental registers with the city every year, and the registration number goes in every ad. Single family homes on the mainland must be owner occupied, or tenant occupied with the owner's OK. Non owner occupied mainland rentals are capped, and the cap is figured each year as a share of the prior year's registered long term rental units, reset every September 1. See the city's short term rental page and code.

Other markets I see clients ask about: coastal York County (Ogunquit, Kennebunkport, Old Orchard Beach), check the town's current rules. Bar Harbor and Mount Desert Island, check the town's current rules. The Midcoast (Brunswick, Camden, Rockland), check the town's current rules. The Lakes Region, check the town's current rules, plus HOA and deed limits and well and septic questions on lake and rural places.

• Property type, income counting method, LLC or personal name
• ID and bank statements for reserves
• Entity documents if closing in an LLC
• STR history or a projection report
• An insurance quote on the exact address
• A lease or rent schedule if the property already has one

1. Send me the address and how you plan to use it
2. Check zoning, city, county and association rules
3. Confirm how the program will count the rent
4. Get a real insurance quote
5. Pre qualify
6. Appraisal with a rent schedule
7. Entity documents if closing in an LLC
8. Underwriting
9. Closing