Short-term rentals in Bullhead City, explained properly.

The permit application must include proof of a valid transaction privilege tax license. Section 5.40.050 separately bars renting or offering for rent a vacation rental that has no valid Arizona TPT license. The City page says the owner needs a TPT license even when an online lodging marketplace is used.

The application is on a City form and its information is publicly available. It lists the rental address, the owner (and statutory agent if an entity), any designees, and a 24-hour emergency point of contact. It also needs proof of a valid TPT license, proof of insurance, and proof that the rental is registered with the Mohave County Assessor's Office under A.R.S. § 33-1902. The owner signs acknowledgments to follow applicable laws, of lawful presence in the United States (A.R.S. § 41-1080), that the owner and emergency contact are not registered sex offenders and have not had certain felony convictions, and that the rental will not offer personal watercraft. The City may deny an application that is incomplete, unpaid, or has false information, or where the owner has a suspended permit for the same rental, one violation involving an offense listed in Section 5.40.050, or three violations of the chapter in 12 months at the rental.

The owner must carry the coverage before first offering the rental and throughout the permit term, and give proof with the application and on request at any time. Each day without the required insurance is a separate violation.

When public safety personnel ask, the owner or the emergency point of contact named on the application must come to the rental or be reachable by phone or text within sixty minutes. Other complaints must be answered in person, by phone, e-mail or text within twenty-four hours. Changes to the contact information need prior written notice to the City at least ten days before the change takes effect.

Section 5.40.050 prohibits using a vacation rental for any nonresidential use; a special event that requires a permit or license; a retail business, restaurant, event center or banquet hall; housing sex offenders; operating or maintaining a sober living home; selling liquor, illegal drugs or pornography; nude or topless dancing; obscenity; adult-oriented business; and any other use prohibited by A.R.S. § 9-500.39 or the City code. Paying or taking a fee for facilitating a rental operating in violation of the code is also prohibited.

The owner or designee is responsible for showing the permit number on every advertisement. Each advertisement without it is a separate violation. A listing that references the rental's location in the city is prima facie evidence that a vacation rental is operating there.

The notice goes at a conspicuous location at or near the interior side of a common entry way. On City request, with a mutually agreed time between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Monday to Friday, the owner must give the City reasonable access to check the posting; each day without the posting is a separate violation. The City also sends notices to adjacent property owners with the address, emergency contact and permit number.

On City request and at a mutually agreed time between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday to Friday, the owner or designee must give the City reasonable access to vacation rental records to check compliance. Failure to grant timely access is a failure to comply, and each day is a separate violation.

An owner or designee who fails to apply for a permit, or to apply for a new permit after one expires, must immediately cease operations. The City may impose a civil penalty of $1,000 per month by certified-mail notice if the owner does not apply within thirty days of the written notice of violation. The FY 2025-2026 fee schedule lists the same $1,000 per month. A failure to notify the City of a change in emergency contact is a separate $1,000 penalty for every 30 days, after 30 days' notice.

Under Section 5.40.110 the City may impose these civil penalties when the owner causes, allows, facilitates or aids a verified violation of the chapter, or fails to perform a required duty, at the same rental in the same twelve-month period. Multiple violations from the same response to an incident count as one. The amounts match the FY 2025-2026 fee schedule. The remedies are cumulative with other penalties under the City code.

The City may suspend a permit for twelve months for three verified violations of the chapter in twelve months (not counting aesthetic, solid waste or parking violations that are not a serious threat to health and safety), for certain single serious violations (a felony, serious injury or death, knowingly housing a sex offender or running a sober living home, or an unpermitted event or commercial use), or for knowingly false application information. A written notice of appeal goes to the city manager within thirty days of the decision; an appeal does not stay the action. A court may also suspend use as a vacation rental for twelve months after a felony causing death or serious injury.

Applies to: Subject to change if state law is amended

A.R.S. § 9-500.39(A) bars Arizona cities and towns from prohibiting short-term rentals, and subsection (B) lists the only ways they may regulate them (health and safety rules, zoning and nuisance rules applied like other residential property, emergency contact, a local permit, neighbor notice, permit number in ads, insurance, and owner residency on some properties with an accessory dwelling unit). Permit caps and minimum-distance or spacing limits are not on that list, and the statute applies to cities of every size.

Short-term rental income (stays under 30 days) is subject to Arizona transaction privilege tax (TPT), so hosts need a TPT license from the Arizona Department of Revenue (a seasonal license can be chosen on AZTaxes.gov) and must include the TPT license number in any advertising for the rental. A city business license, where a city requires one, is separate from the TPT license.

Arizona's state transaction privilege tax rate on the transient lodging classification (A.R.S. § 42-5070) is 5.5%, set by A.R.S. § 42-5010(A)(2). County and city taxes are added on top and vary by location.

Hosts must file a TPT return for every period even if the property was not rented, filing a $0 return rather than skipping the filing.

Separately from tax licensing, every Arizona county requires residential rental properties to be registered with the County Assessor, and penalties can apply to rentals that are not registered. A.R.S. § 9-500.39(J) keeps this duty in place for short-term rental owners.