Sandy, Utah Airbnb Rules & Investment Guide

Confirm the parcel is inside Sandy City and obtain written City guidance on dwelling legality, community permit availability, private restrictions, and the exact rental model before underwriting income.

• Underwrite the property with verified comparable rentals, lawful availability, and conservative seasonal assumptions.
• Budget the special-use permit, business license, inspections, safety work, taxes, utilities, cleaning, management, maintenance, reserves, and financing.
• Do not substitute unsupported citywide performance forecasts for address-specific diligence.
• Make the offer contingent on the approvals and records needed for the intended STR use.

Sandy allows an STR only in an existing legal owner-occupied residential dwelling with an administrative STR special-use permit and a valid short-term-rental business license.

• The fee-title owner must be an individual or qualifying family-trust trustor with at least 50% ownership, not a corporation, partnership, LLC, or similar entity.
• Use the home as the primary residence for at least 183 days per calendar year and retain the required tax-return, identification, and notarized-affidavit evidence.
• Confirm that recorded covenants, association rules, leases, lender terms, and insurance do not prohibit or restrict the use.
• Ask the City whether the property’s Sandy community has an available permit or a waiting list before relying on approval.

Obtain the Sandy STR special-use permit before applying for the short-term-rental business license. One license covers one STR unit, and no person may hold more than one STR license.

• Prepare proof of ownership, owner-occupancy documents, a notarized private-restrictions affidavit, management-course proof, parking plan, compliance affidavit, and property/interior plans.
• Complete required inspections and submit a Utah sales-tax license plus proof of required tax and fee payments.
• Renew the business license before its July 1 expiration; a lapse closes the license account and expires the linked special-use permit.
• Confirm current application sequence, forms, fees, inspections, and community permit availability with Community Development before filing.

Complete City inspections and maintain the dwelling, safety equipment, exterior areas, and guest procedures throughout operation.

• Provide a working smoke alarm in every sleeping area and on each floor, plus a working carbon-monoxide detector on each floor.
• Remove sidewalk snow within 24 hours after snowfall and comply with property-maintenance, landscaping, garbage, structure, fence, and wall rules.
• Give renters the City noise requirements; a renter who violates noise rules more than once within 72 hours must be evicted.
• Post the required entrance nameplate and indoor information packet with permits, contacts, parking, occupancy, noise, garbage, emergency, and code information.

Submit and follow an off-street parking plan that accommodates occupants and renters without counting street parking.

• Count only the existing garage, driveway, dedicated residential spaces, and approved improvements completed before license issuance.
• Keep the owner or designated representative reachable by telephone 24/7, 365 days per year.
• When necessary, the responsible contact must physically respond within one hour of a legitimate complaint.
• Maintain booking, vacancy, occupancy, parking, and response records that support renewal verification.

Register for the Utah sales and transient-room tax accounts that apply and verify the current rate for the Sandy property address.

• Utah treats lodging stays under 30 consecutive days as temporary lodging generally subject to sales tax and transient room tax.
• Use the Utah State Tax Commission rate tools and written guidance to confirm state, local, county, lodging-assessment, and taxable-charge treatment.
• Review each platform’s current collection and remittance terms; file and pay direct-booking taxes and any amounts the platform does not handle.
• Recheck registrations, rates, filing periods, exemptions, and marketplace treatment before launch and whenever rules or channels change.

Structure every booking around Sandy’s approved occupancy and rental-period limits rather than the capacity displayed by a platform.

• Limit renter occupancy to no more than eight related people; the owner is not included in that renter count.
• Rent to only one renter and that renter’s party at a time; do not divide the dwelling among simultaneous short- or long-term renters.
• Keep each stay between one and 29 consecutive nights and leave one consecutive vacancy night between rentals.
• Limit whole-dwelling rental to 182 nights per year; a portion of the dwelling may be rented up to 365 nights per year.

Operating without both City approvals or outside the approved standards is a violation and can jeopardize the property’s ability to continue as an STR.

• The City may require a violation to be cured within 48 hours or another period set by the enforcement official.
• A third violation within 12 months automatically revokes the license and special-use permit and creates a two-year ineligibility period.
• The special-use permit expires when the home is sold or the business license expires and cannot transfer to a buyer.
• Private covenants, insurance, lender, and association rules may remain more restrictive than City approval.

Use official City and State contacts for written, address-specific answers before committing capital or accepting reservations.

• Sandy Community Development and Planning: confirm City limits, lawful dwelling status, community permit availability, special-use standards, parking, plans, and inspections.
• Sandy Business Licensing: confirm the license application, July 1 renewal, current fees, inspections, tax documents, and enforcement history.
• Utah State Tax Commission: confirm registrations, current address-specific rates, taxable charges, filing frequency, marketplace collection, and direct-booking duties.
• Use title, assessor, permit, association, insurance, utility, financing, and verified-comparable records to complete the property model.

Confirm Sandy’s current charges and complete every approval, safety, tax, response, and recordkeeping step before accepting a stay.

• The City’s FY 2027 consolidated schedule lists the 2026 initial STR/accessory-apartment business-license fee, including inspection, at $282.
• The same schedule lists a $105 annual renewal and a $232 general special-use-permit fee for 2026; confirm the fees that apply to the filing.
• Map the parcel, confirm the lawful dwelling and community permit availability, and resolve private restrictions before applying.
• Finish approvals, inspections, safety equipment, parking, posting, tax accounts, insurance, guest rules, and one-hour response coverage.
• Launch only after the permit and license are active and the property model includes financing, taxes, utilities, cleaning, maintenance, supplies, platform fees, vacancy, snow, and reserves.