Des Moines Airbnb Rules & Investment Guide (2026)

Des Moines STR Acquisition Decision

Treat City jurisdiction, conditional-use approval, and operator eligibility as purchase contingencies rather than post-closing tasks.

• Confirm the parcel is inside Des Moines city limits before applying City zoning rules.
• Do not advertise until the Board of Adjustment approves the conditional use.
• Test the proposed operator against primary-residence, ownership, consent, and structure rules.
• Check unresolved building, fire, health, police, housing, and zoning cases because open enforcement prohibits the use.
• Underwrite approval time, lodging compliance, insurance, taxes, operating controls, and reserves before waiving contingencies.

Des Moines STR Eligibility Rules

Eligibility changes with the dwelling form, operator, residency pattern, and number of units in the structure.

• The ordinance defines a short-term commercial rental as compensated lodging in all or part of a household unit for fewer than 30 consecutive days.
• A single-household detached structure may contain no more than one STR; the operator generally must use that structure or an associated principal structure as a primary residence for at least 245 days annually.
• A two-household attached structure or condominium may have no more than one STR, with the same 245-day residency requirement for the owner-occupant or consenting tenant-occupant.
• Individually owned condominium buildings are capped at 10% of household units, rounded down; a non-condominium multi-household building is also capped at 10% and must be operated by the building owner or authorized manager.
• Private covenants, leases, lender terms, and condominium rules can be stricter than City approval.

Des Moines Conditional-Use Process

The Board of Adjustment decides the conditional use, so application timing and approval conditions are property-specific.

• Use the City planning application resources and confirm the current filing package, hearing calendar, notice steps, and fee before submitting.
• The current City fee schedule lists a $310 short-term rental conditional-use fee; verify the amount at filing because schedules change.
• Provide the owner and authorized management agent details required by the ordinance, including physical address, email, tax identification number, and phone number.
• If a tenant will operate the STR, obtain the property owner’s signed written consent where the ordinance requires it.
• Read the filed decision and order carefully; additional reasonable conditions imposed by the Board become operating requirements.

Des Moines STR Safety and Insurance

Approval does not replace lodging, property-maintenance, fire-safety, occupancy, or insurance obligations.

• Confirm applicable hotel or motel licensing and rental-property inspection requirements with City staff before opening.
• Limit occupancy to the bedroom or sleeping-area allowances in the International Property Maintenance Code.
• Provide each renting party exclusive use of a bedroom and shared use of a full bathroom at minimum.
• Maintain at least $500,000 in STR liability coverage or transact through a platform providing equal or greater coverage.
• Post an interior front-door notice identifying fire extinguishers, gas shutoffs, fire exits, and pull alarms.

Des Moines STR Operating Duties

The ordinance imposes continuing guest, neighbor, recordkeeping, and responsible-party duties after approval.

• Each renting party must include an adult age 21 or older and must be a single party of individuals.
• Assemblies are prohibited, and guests and operators must comply with the City noise ordinance.
• Keep an updated guest packet with emergency contacts, police and fire numbers, trash schedule, parking and snow restrictions, and occupancy limits.
• Give annual emergency-contact information to immediately adjoining owners and occupants and to adjacent properties across a public right-of-way.
• Maintain guest registration and compliance records and make them available to the Community Development Director on request.

Des Moines STR Rental Limits and Enforcement

Operating capacity depends on the 120-day rule, owner presence, continued compliance, and the Board’s conditions.

• The general limit is 120 cumulative rental days per annual period across every platform and advertising method.
• An owner-occupied single-household STR, or an STR on the same lot as an owner-occupied principal residence, may operate beyond day 120 only while the owner is present.
• Advertising is prohibited before approval and whenever the STR is out of compliance with ordinance requirements or Board conditions.
• Unresolved code enforcement makes the STR use prohibited until the violations are corrected to City approval.
• Report an authorized management agent change to the Community Development Director in writing within three business days.

Des Moines Lodging Tax Responsibilities

Treat tax registration, collection, filing, and recordkeeping as operating prerequisites, not platform assumptions.

• Iowa imposes a 5% state hotel and motel tax on qualifying lodging; local hotel and motel tax is additional.
• Des Moines uses a 7% local hotel and motel tax, producing a typical 12% combined lodging-tax rate before any separately applicable charges.
• Confirm taxability for the exact stay and charge: Iowa guidance generally addresses sleeping-room rentals of 31 consecutive days or less, while the City STR zoning definition uses fewer than 30 consecutive days.
• Confirm which amounts are taxable, who remits each tax, and whether a platform collects any portion before setting prices or filing returns.
• The City may request proof of tax payment, and the ordinance requires that proof within 15 days of request.

Des Moines STR Costs and Contingencies

Build the property model from verified, property-specific inputs rather than unsupported citywide performance claims.

• Include the current application fee, hearing and notice work, inspection or lodging compliance, safety corrections, and professional review.
• Budget insurance, furnishing, utilities, cleaning, platform charges, management, maintenance, snow and trash service, and replacement reserves.
• Model the 120-day annual cap unless the exact owner-presence exception can be maintained and documented.
• Apply the verified combined lodging-tax treatment to taxable charges without assuming a platform handles every filing duty.
• Keep financing, appraisal, inspection, title, private-restriction, and City-approval contingencies open until the evidence supports closing.

Des Moines STR Contacts

Use the office that controls each decision and preserve written answers with the property file.

• Contact Planning and Urban Design at 515-283-4192 or planning@dmgov.org for conditional-use filing and Board questions.
• Contact Neighborhood Inspections at 515-283-4046 or nid@dmgov.org for rental-property inspection and lodging-compliance questions.
• Use the Zoning Board of Adjustment page for agendas, hearings, decisions, and procedural information.
• Contact the Iowa Department of Revenue for state and local hotel and motel tax registration and filing guidance.
• Ask the lender, insurer, title professional, condominium association, and counsel about private or transaction-specific limits.

Before waiving acquisition contingencies, plan a Des Moines property strategy call to review jurisdiction, conditional-use risk, residency constraints, operating assumptions, and setup scope. STR Search can assist with property selection and setup planning, while the City remains the authority for legal eligibility and approval.

Des Moines Official STR Sources

Rules, fees, procedures, inspections, taxes, and contacts checked September 28, 2026.

• Des Moines Ordinance No. 15,844.
• Des Moines Zoning Board of Adjustment.
• Des Moines planning application resources.
• Des Moines rental inspections.
• Iowa Department of Revenue hotel and motel tax guidance.