Guide · Cost to run
What it costs to run a Las Vegas short-term rental.
The $500 license is the easy part. Inside Las Vegas city limits only an owner's own primary residence can qualify, so the real cost question is whether your property is eligible at all.
The short answer
Four numbers to know
| Business license | $500 a year The Conditional Use Verification application that comes first has no fee. |
|---|---|
| Lodging tax | 13% to 13.38% 13.38% inside the Primary Gaming Corridor, 13% elsewhere in the city. Due by the 15th of the following month. |
| Insurance | $500,000 minimum liability Shown with the business license application. |
| Unlicensed penalty | $1,000 to $10,000 per violation Nevada law sets this range for cities. Confirm how the city counts violations. |
Fixed cost
What the license costs
The columns show how many booked nights, at an example nightly rate before tax, cover the license (examples, not forecasts).
| Item | Amount | Nights at $150 | Nights at $250 | Nights at $400 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual business license | $500 | 3.3 | 2.0 | 1.3 |
Source: City of Las Vegas 2026 Short-Term Rental Application Instructions, read October 7, 2026. Not included: insurance premiums, the home inspection fixes (smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, extinguishers), parking work and HOA paperwork.
Guest-paid, but it shapes your price
The tax on a stay
An illustration: 3 nights at $300 is a $900 rental price. Las Vegas uses one combined transient lodging tax, with the rate depending on where the property sits.
| Location | Rate | On the $900 example |
|---|---|---|
| Outside the Primary Gaming Corridor | 13.0% | $117.00 |
| Inside the Primary Gaming Corridor | 13.38% | $120.42 |
This is a simplified illustration on the base rental price. Room tax paid after the 15th carries a 10% late penalty plus 1.5% interest for each month it is delinquent. Unincorporated Clark County, including the Strip, runs a separate program with different rules.
The real constraint
Whether your property qualifies
| Owner-occupied | Primary residence only Non-owner-occupied short-term rentals are not permitted inside city limits. |
|---|---|
| Spacing and size | 660 feet from other STRs, 2,500 feet from a resort hotel No more than three bedrooms in total, counting the owner's own. |
| Excluded areas | Summerlin, Skye Canyon and others Several master-planned areas and Form-Based Code properties are off limits. HOA approval is required where one exists. |
| Process | Verification, inspection, then license A Code Enforcement home inspection comes before the $500 license, which needs a 24-hour local contact and a platform list. |
Full sourced rules, with evidence for each line, are on the Las Vegas market page. For another Southwest market, see the Phoenix page.
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