Short-term rentals in Indianapolis, explained properly.

Section 852-106(2)(c) says the Department of Business and Neighborhood Services shall collect a permit fee of $150 for an initial permit issued to an owner for the permitted property, and for a subsequent permit issued after the owner's previous permit has been revoked. The section does not state a fee for annual renewal. The chapter shows no effective date or separate fee schedule for the fee (the section history reads G.O. 25, 2024, section 1), so the figure is marked for review until a dated schedule is found. Section 852-107 sends permit fees to the consolidated county general fund.

Section 852-106(2)(b) lists the contents. Owner: name, street and mailing address, email (if applicable) and telephone; for a corporation or partnership, the state of incorporation or organization and the names, residence addresses and telephone numbers of principal officers or partners. Property manager (if used): name, street and mailing address, email (if applicable) and telephone. A short description of how each of the owner's rentals on the property is marketed or advertised, including the advertised occupancy limits and whether it is a single-family home, a dwelling unit in a single-family home, a unit in a two-family or multifamily dwelling, or a condominium unit.

Section 852-106(2)(d) says that as part of the annual registration an inspection may be required to ensure the structure or unit meets all applicable building codes and is safe and habitable. The chapter does not say when an inspection is required, who performs it or what it costs. Section 852-104 lists fire safety and life safety among the program's purposes.

Section 852-105 says short-term rental units shall be in legally built dwelling units that meet all applicable building code requirements, within a primary building or an accessory building that conforms with the secondary dwelling unit section. It prohibits a recreational vehicle, mobile home dwelling unit, travel trailer, automobile, shipping container or similar structure, and a motor vehicle, part of one, or any structure not intended for permanent human occupancy.

Section 852-105 says parking shall comply with section 744, articles IV, V and VII and chapter 931 of the Revised Code (commercial areas), and signs shall comply with section 744, article IX (commercial areas). Those sections were not read, so the page gives no parking counts or sign limits.

Section 852-108 says short-term rental owners who do not comply with the regulations may be subject to enforcement actions including inspection, citations and revocation of registration under IC 36-1-24. The chapter gives no fine schedule, and the state statute it relies on could not be read, so no amounts are stated.

The Department of Revenue describes the county innkeeper's tax (CIT) as a county tax on the rental of rooms and accommodations for periods of less than 30 days, applied in addition to state sales tax, and lists houses, apartments, condominiums and other personal residences available for rent among taxable accommodations. It does not apply to rentals of 30 days or more, and transactions exempt from state sales tax are not subject to it. An owner whose primary personal residence is rented for fewer than 15 days in the current or preceding calendar year, in line with the 14-day rent rule under Section 280A(g) of the Internal Revenue Code, is exempt from sales tax and any CIT, but all transactions through a marketplace facilitator are subject to CIT. Rates and collection points vary by county and are shown on each place's page; the Department says its table may not show all current rates. The state sales tax rate was not stated on the page read.

The Department says marketplace facilitators must register with the Department to collect CIT for all adopting counties, whether or not the county collects locally, and must remit all CIT directly to the Department, which distributes it to the county. When a personal residence is rented through a marketplace facilitator, the homeowner does not collect and pay CIT on that booking. The page covers CIT only; it does not say here whether platforms collect state sales tax on these stays.