Short-term rental rules · Breckenridge, Colorado
Short-term rentals in Breckenridge, explained properly.
Breckenridge requires an annual short-term rental license with a $756-per-bedroom regulatory fee, and manages supply through four zones (Resort, Tourism/Zone 1, Downtown Core/Zone 2, and Single Family Residential/Zone 3), each with its own license cap and waitlist. Zone 3 (single-family residential) is the most restrictive, with licenses already far exceeding the cap and multi-year waitlists for new applicants.
Draft. These rules were compiled from the official sources listed below but have not yet been checked line by line. Confirm with the city before making decisions.
At a glance
What you need to know before you buy or list
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Annual STR license required | A valid short-term rental license is required to rent a property for fewer than 30 consecutive days; the license is non-transferable and non-refundable when the property is sold[1] |
| Annual regulatory fee | $756 per studio or bedroom per year, established by Ordinance No. 35 (November 23, 2021), funding housing programs, community impact mitigation, and program administration, in addition to standard Business and Occupational License Tax (BOLT)[1] |
| Four-zone cap structure | The town manages STR supply through four zones — Resort Properties, Tourism (Zone 1), Downtown Core (Zone 2), and Single Family Residential (Zone 3) — each with its own license cap and waitlist, adopted via ordinance in August 2022 (effective September 27, 2022)[2] |
| Approximate caps by zone | Roughly 1,680 licenses in Zone 1 (Tourism); roughly 305 in Zone 2 (Downtown Core); roughly 390 in Zone 3 (Single Family Residential); no cap in the Resort Properties zone. Zones 2 and 3 already have more existing licenses than their caps (grandfathered), so new applicants face waitlists, especially in Zone 3 where wait times run multiple years[3]Confirming |
| Occupancy limit | Two persons per bedroom plus four additional persons total for multi-bedroom units; a maximum of four persons total for studio units; bedroom count is based on the Summit County Assessor's records[3]Confirming |
| Parking requirement and deficiency fee | Properties must provide one parking space per bedroom plus one additional space; owners unable to meet this requirement pay a $300 fee per deficient space[4]Confirming |
| Primary-residence exception to the regulatory fee | An owner whose accommodation unit is their primary residence, and who rents it for no more than 21 days per year, is exempt from the annual regulatory fee[4]Confirming |
| License number required in advertisements | The license number must appear in all advertisements for the property, regardless of platform (Airbnb, VRBO, etc.)[1] |
| Last researched | September 25, 2026 |
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Detailed rules
The full picture, section by section
Eligibility & zoning
| Existing licenses grandfathered when caps were adopted | When the zone caps were adopted in 2022, existing short-term rental licenses in every zone were protected and not revoked, even where the cap was already exceeded[2] |
|---|---|
| Zone 2 and Zone 3 caps expected to decline naturally | Because Zones 2 and 3 already exceed their caps through grandfathered licenses, the number of licenses in those zones is expected to gradually decrease as properties change hands or owners decline to renew[2] |
| GIS map to check a specific property's zone | The town provides a searchable GIS map so an owner can look up which of the four short-term rental zones a specific property falls into and what the corresponding cap and waitlist status is[1] |
Licensing & application
| HOAs may impose additional restrictions | A homeowners association can impose its own additional short-term rental restrictions on top of the town's licensing rules[1] |
|---|
Taxes & fees
| Booking platforms remit sales/accommodation taxes | Airbnb and VRBO collect and remit applicable local and state sales/accommodation taxes on behalf of licensees who book through those platforms, though holding a valid town license is still required regardless[1] |
|---|
Operations & complaints
| Town complaint line | Neighbors or guests can report short-term rental issues to the town's complaint line at 970-423-5334[1] |
|---|
Changes
Recent and pending changes
The Town of Breckenridge's own accommodation-unit licensing page and its 'Development of License Caps and Regulations' history page are the two primary official sources to monitor going forward. The current zone cap numbers and waitlist status came from a secondary real-estate source rather than being stated numerically on the town's own pages in this research pass, so these figures should be periodically re-checked against the town's GIS zone-lookup tool and any updated cap table the town publishes. Given the multi-year Zone 3 waitlist reported by secondary sources, any change to cap policy in that zone would be a high-impact update for subscribers.
Sources
Every rule above links to one of these
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This page is general information compiled from official sources, not legal or tax advice. HOA rules, deed restrictions and zoning for a specific property can be stricter. Confirm with the local permitting office and a qualified professional before buying or listing a property.