New Virginia Beach ordinance restricts short-term rentals to Oceanfront and Sandbridge

The Virginia Beach City Council has voted to allow new short-term rentals to operate in the Oceanfront Resort zoning district and approved new safety regulations for short-term rental properties. Hosts will be required to have a conditional use permit in order to offer vacation rentals in the new overlay district.

The new operating rules require short-term rentals to have smoke alarms and fire and carbon monoxide detectors as well as undergo city inspections every year, unless they’re operated by a professional management company. In that case, inspections will be required every three years. Decks must be inspected every three years in all cases.

Short-term rentals in good standing before the new law was passed may continue to operate, though they must follow the new rules. Illegal vacation rentals may be fined up to $500.

Earlier this summer, the council voted to ban all short-term rentals outside of Sandbridge, unless a majority of neighborhood residents ask for them. Under the new short-term rental overlay district rules, short-term rentals can operate in specific areas of Virginia Beach if 75% of people in a neighborhood petition the City Council to allow them.

At that time, the City Council also approved rules that ban events, limit rentals to one rental contract per week, and cap occupancy at two adults per bedroom.

Vacation rental operators in Virginia Beach are also required to register with the city Commissioner of Revenue’s office and pay all applicable taxes. Virginia Beach short-term rentals are subject to state and local sales tax and local lodging tax.

While Vrbo collects state and local sales taxes and local transient occupancy tax on behalf of its Virginia Beach hosts, Airbnb only collects state sales tax for its listings in Virginia Beach. Hosts are responsible for any taxes that are not collected for them.

MyLodgeTax can help short-term rental hosts automate and simplify lodging tax compliance at the city, county, and state level, including tax registration and filing. For more on short-term rental lodging taxes in Virginia, see our state Vacation Rental Tax Guide. If you have tax questions related to vacation rental properties, drop us a line and we’ll get back to you with answers.