Short-term rentals in Columbus, explained properly.

The application must be notarized, with an affirmation that the applicant and the dwelling comply with all local, state and federal laws (598.03(B)(9)). It lists the owner, the host, the number of guestrooms, any other short-term rentals or hotels in Columbus the applicant has an interest in, and all hosting platforms the applicant is registered on, with confirmation (598.03(B)). The applicant, the host, the 24-hour local emergency contact and any property manager must each give the results of a fingerprint background check by a provider approved by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (598.03(B)(10)). The City's information sheet (revised Aug 31, 2026) also asks for a letter of good standing from the City Income Tax Division; a permit must be denied if the applicant, the host or the property is not in good standing with that Division (598.05(A)(4)-(5)). Changes to the application information must be reported within 10 days (598.03(F)).

Fees are set by the Director of Building and Zoning Services (598.03(A)) and are listed on the City's short-term rental information sheet revised August 31, 2026.

A renewal application may be filed before the permit expires; the renewal takes effect when the old permit expires and lasts one calendar year. A permit issued or renewed on the strength of a lease ends on the last day of the lease if that comes first (598.03(C)-(D)).

No permit may be transferred or assigned to another person or entity or to another short-term rental; an attempted transfer automatically revokes the permit (598.13). Any transfer in ownership of a dwelling voids the short-term rental permit held in that owner's name for that address, and a new application is required (598.03(G)).

If the owner has signed a land contract, lease, management agreement or similar agreement, a copy must come with the application, and it must explicitly consent to the dwelling being used as a short-term rental. The absence of such a clause, or a prohibition, is grounds to deny the permit (598.03(B)(4)).

The City assigns each approved dwelling a permit number, which must be listed with the rental on every hosting platform (598.03(H)). Listing a dwelling on a paid booking site without a valid permit number is a misdemeanor, and each listing is a separate offense (598.04(F), 598.20(A)).

A paid booking site may not facilitate a booking of a dwelling with five guestrooms or less in Columbus unless the owner or permanent occupant has given it a valid permit number (598.04(G)); a site that does not correct a violation in a reasonable and timely manner commits a misdemeanor (598.20(B)). Hosts and platforms must keep records of each rental's address, the person who listed it, and each guest's dates, number of persons and daily rate, for at least four years, and give them to the Director on request (598.04(H)).

Mandatory grounds include material misrepresentation on the application, certain convictions on the premises, and the applicant, host or property not being in good standing with the City Income Tax Division (598.05(A)). Discretionary grounds include three or more calls for service (police, fire, or sanitation, refuse or noise complaints) at the rental in a twelve-month period, a history of conduct that endangers neighborhood safety or diminishes residents' quality of life, outstanding fire orders, nuisance findings and hindering inspections (598.05(B)). Evidence of the conduct is enough; a conviction is not needed unless stated (598.05(C)).

Listing without a valid permit number (598.04(F)) and offering a dwelling without a permit (598.02(A)(2)) are each an unclassified misdemeanor with a fine of not more than $250; a person previously convicted is guilty of a third-degree misdemeanor. All gross revenue from rentals made without a permit must be remitted to the City, subject to forfeiture law. These are strict liability offenses (598.20).

The host must give guests written notice of any known, non-obvious or concealed condition that may be dangerous and must designate a local 24-hour emergency contact person (598.04(C)); that contact must also pass the background check (598.03(B)(10)c.).

Hosts must comply with the Ohio wiretap law (R.C. 2933.52), notify guests of any indoor or outdoor surveillance or recording device, and immediately deactivate indoor devices if the guest does not consent (598.04(D)).

These limits come from the City's short-term rental information sheet (revised Aug 31, 2026); the City Code sections read do not set an occupancy limit.

Chapter 4515, enacted by Ordinance 0923-2026 on April 20, 2026, requires yearly registration of residential rental properties, but it does not apply to properties or parts of properties that are subject to hotel, motel or short-term rental permit requirements under Chapter 598 (4515.04(A)(2)).

Section 598.03(J).

When a hosting platform collects the full tax on each booking, the host is relieved of the duty to collect (371.03(a)); the City's FAQ says a host whose platform collects and remits the tax does not need to file a return. Otherwise each vendor files a monthly return by the 20th for the previous month, whether or not lodging was furnished, and a late return costs a 10% penalty (371.06). Returns are filed with the Division of Income Tax through CRISP (FAQ). Records must be kept for four years (371.05, FAQ).

Stated in the City's Excise Lodging Tax FAQ for short-term rental vendors (revised June 2, 2023); the City income tax ordinance was not read.

The Department of Taxation's taxability guide lists hotel room rentals as taxable for stays under 30 days in facilities with 5 or more sleeping rooms. Its information release on bed and breakfasts quotes the Ohio Revised Code definition of a hotel (an establishment where sleeping accommodations are offered to guests and five or more rooms are used for guests, in one or several structures) and of transient guests (stays of less than thirty consecutive days), and says a bed and breakfast with fewer than five rooms available to transient guests is not a hotel and does not have to charge the tax on the room; food served on the premises is still taxed unless room and meal charges are separated. The Department gives the state sales tax rate as 5.75 percent. The information release dates from 1995 and cites older letters of R.C. 5739.01; the current text of the Revised Code could not be read for this page. How a whole-home short-term rental counts its rooms is not addressed by the sources read; check with the Department of Taxation. City and county lodging taxes are shown on each place's page.

Since September 1, 2019, a marketplace facilitator that meets substantial nexus in Ohio is treated as the seller for the sales it facilitates and must collect and pay Ohio sales tax on them. The Department of Taxation says that, to count as facilitating a sale, the marketplace must be selling a taxable good or service used or received in Ohio, and that this excludes lodging by a hotel. The Department pages read do not say whether booking platforms collect state sales tax on stays at short-term rentals that are hotels (five or more rooms); check with the platform and the Department. City rules on platform collection of city lodging taxes are shown on each place's page.