Short-term rental rules · Jacksonville, Alabama
Short-term rentals in Jacksonville, explained properly.
Jacksonville regulates short-term rentals of dwelling units in Sec. 24-610 of its zoning chapter, which applies to residential and nonresidential districts in the city and its police jurisdiction. Rentals in residential districts are called STRs and rentals in nonresidential districts are called STNRs. Every STR or STNR needs its own City business license before it is offered, advertised or rented, and the license is not issued until the section is satisfied. The applicant names an emergency contact who can respond by phone around the clock and on site within one hour, gives proof of short-term rental insurance (resubmitted each year), and delivers written notice to the owners of adjoining properties. An STR may be used only for lodging, not for weddings, parties or concerts, and no on-premises sign is allowed in a residential district. Lodging taxes must be collected and remitted to the City. Violations can bring license suspension or revocation proceedings and a fine. The section was last amended by Ordinance O-676-26 (January 26, 2026). We haven't reviewed the zoning use tables yet, so confirm zoning before you buy, and the license fee, the City lodging tax rate and the fine amount haven't been reviewed either.
At a glance
What you need to know before you buy or list
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Are short-term rentals allowed? | Conditional: allowed with a City STR (residential district) or STNR (nonresidential district) business license under Sec. 24-610; which zoning districts allow the use hasn't been reviewed [1] ClauseConfirming |
| City short-term rental license and permit required? | Yes: a City STR or STNR business license for each rental, with an application, emergency contact, insurance and notice to adjoining owners; the license fee hasn't been reviewed [1] Clause |
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Detailed rules
The full picture, section by section
Operating rules
| Emergency contact | Name an emergency contact who answers calls 24 hours a day, seven days a week, responds within one hour to complaints and can reach the rental on site within one hour at the City's request [1] Clause The application must include the emergency contact's name and telephone number (Sec. 24-610(1)b.). The contact must be able to answer calls for the duration of each rental period and respond within one hour to complaints about the condition or operation of the rental or the conduct of renters or their guests. Before any change of contact, the owner or operator sends the revised information to the business license division of the finance department. The contact's information is also posted inside the rental (Sec. 24-610(2)f.). |
|---|---|
| Insurance | Required: vacation rental or short-term rental insurance (or equivalent) in addition to the homeowners or commercial space policy, with proof before the license issues and again at each renewal [1] Clause Sec. 24-610(1)c. requires every licensee to obtain and maintain vacation rental insurance, short-term rental insurance, or an equivalent form of coverage in addition to the homeowners or commercial space insurance. A coverage amount is not shown here. |
| Notice to adjoining owners | Before the license is issued, deliver written notice to the owners of adjoining properties and give the business license division a copy [1] Clause The notice must give the names, addresses and telephone numbers of the owner, operator and emergency contact; the telephone number for the public to report violations to the code enforcement division of the city's police department; and the maximum occupancy of the unit allowed under Sec. 24-610(3) (Sec. 24-610(1)d.). |
| Weddings, parties and events | An STR is rented only for lodging and may not be used for weddings, parties, concerts or similar events; an STNR may be rented for those events [1] Clause Sec. 24-610(2)a. limits an STR to lodging use and bars weddings, parties, concerts or similar events during any rental period. The same paragraph says an STNR may be rented for weddings, parties, concerts or similar events. Sec. 24-610(2)c. adds that each rental must comply with all City laws and codes, including those on building construction, fire safety, noise and garbage. |
| Signs | No on-premises sign legible from a public street for an STR in a residential district; an STNR in a nonresidential district may have one sign (up to 2 ft by 4 ft or 8 sq ft, letters up to 8 inches, not illuminated, approved by the building department) [1] Clause Sec. 24-610(2)b. bars on-premises signage legible from any public street right-of-way for an STR located in a residential district. One on-premises sign legible from the forward-facing public street right-of-way is permitted for an STNR in a nonresidential district, no larger than two feet by four feet or eight square feet with letters no larger than eight inches, non-illuminated and approved by the building department. |
| Parking | Adequate off-street parking (concrete or asphalt) and/or on-street parking for all renters and guests; no recreational vehicle, bus or trailer parked on the street or forward of the front building line [1] Clause Sec. 24-610(2)d. applies to every STR and STNR. A number of spaces is not shown here. |
| Food service and cooking facilities | No licensee, owner or operator may prepare or serve food to a renter or guest, and cooking facilities are not permitted in STR guest rooms; the bed and breakfast home definition in Sec. 24-2 is excepted [1] Clause Sec. 24-610(2)e. says the food and cooking rule does not apply to a bed and breakfast home as defined in Sec. 24-2 of the Code. Sec. 24-2 hasn't been reviewed. |
| Posting in the rental | Post a copy of the license, the emergency contact information and the house rules in a conspicuous place inside the rental; the house rules must comply with Sec. 24-610 [1] Clause Sec. 24-610(2)f. covers each STR and STNR. After a violation notice, the owner, operator or emergency contact must promptly tell the renter and act to correct it and prevent a recurrence (Sec. 24-610(2)g.). |
| Occupancy limit | Limited to the occupancy in Sec. 24-69 for the zoning district; an STNR is limited to two persons per bedroom, plus two individuals, related or unrelated; the written rental agreement must cap overnight occupancy at the limit [1] ClauseConfirming Sec. 24-610(3)a. first limits the maximum occupancy of an STR or STNR unit to the number of occupants in Sec. 24-69 (maximum dwelling unit occupancy) for the zoning district where the rental is located, and then limits an STNR unit to two persons per bedroom plus two individuals. Both sentences name the STNR, and Sec. 24-69 hasn't been reviewed, so how they fit together is unconfirmed. Sec. 24-610(3)b. requires the owner or operator to limit overnight occupancy to that maximum by written agreement with the renter. |
| City lodging tax | The licensee must charge, collect, report and remit City lodging taxes under Chapter 20, Article III (Secs. 20-56 through 20-60); the rate hasn't been reviewed [1] Clause Sec. 24-610(1)e. points to the lodging tax levy in Chapter 20, Taxation, Article III, Lodging Tax, Sec. 20-56 through Sec. 20-60. We haven't reviewed Chapter 20, so the City rate is not shown here. The State lodgings tax is shown separately in the inherited Alabama fields. |
Penalties & enforcement
| Penalties for violating the section | A violation is an offense punished on conviction by a fine set in Sec. 7-6; written notice and a compliance date come first, and a first warning is possible [1] Clause The code enforcement division of the city's police department gives the licensee written notice of a violation, any corrective action and a due date, and may extend the date if substantial progress has been made (Sec. 24-610(5)a.). It may issue a warning to a person not previously warned or cited (Sec. 24-610(5)b.). Sec. 24-610(7) makes a violation an offense, punished on conviction by the fine in Chapter 7, Article I, Sec. 7-6, unlawful to do business without a license. We haven't reviewed Sec. 7-6, so the fine amount is not shown here. |
|---|---|
| License suspension and revocation | An uncorrected violation can bring temporary suspension of the license until corrected; recurrent violations (noise, occupancy, parking, safety) can start revocation proceedings under Sec. 7-19 [1] Clause If a violation has not been corrected by the compliance date, the code enforcement division may cause temporary suspension of the license for the unit or units involved until the violation is corrected (Sec. 24-610(5)c.). When recurrent violations occur, including noise, occupancy, parking and safety violations, the division may begin revocation proceedings through the city's finance manager as provided in Chapter 7, Article I, Sec. 7-19, procedure for revocation or suspension of license (Sec. 24-610(5)d.). Sec. 7-19 hasn't been reviewed, so the revocation procedure is not described here. |
State law that also applies
| Alabama state lodgings tax | 4% of the charge in most counties (5% in 16 north Alabama counties); stays of 180 continuous days or more are not taxed [2] [3] Clause 1 Clause 2 Section 40-26-1 of the Code of Alabama levies a privilege or license tax on every person in the business of renting or furnishing rooms, lodging or accommodations to transients in any hotel, motel, inn, tourist camp, tourist cabin or any other place in which rooms, lodgings or accommodations are regularly furnished to transients for a consideration. The rate is 5% of the charge in the 16 counties of the Alabama mountain lakes area (Blount, Cherokee, Colbert, Cullman, DeKalb, Etowah, Franklin, Jackson, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Morgan and Winston) and 4% in every other county, and the charge includes any charge for personal property and services furnished in the room. The tax does not apply to rooms, lodgings or accommodations supplied for 180 continuous days or more. The Alabama Department of Revenue says lodgings tax is collected through an account at My Alabama Taxes, and that counties and cities may add their own lodgings taxes of between 1% and 13%, some collected by the Department, some by third-party administrators and some by the local government itself. Local lodgings taxes are shown on each place's page. |
|---|---|
| Do booking platforms collect the tax? | Yes, since January 1, 2025: platforms that facilitate a booking and charge a fee must collect and remit the state lodgings tax and parallel local levies, unless a written agreement says the owner remits [4] [5] Clause 1 Clause 2 Section 40-26-1.1 of the Code of Alabama (the Alabama Tourism Tax Protection Act of 2024, Act 2024-334) says an accommodations intermediary, meaning a business other than the owner that facilitates a lodging transaction and charges the guest a room or accommodations fee it keeps as compensation, must collect and remit the state lodgings tax and parallel local levies for transactions on or after January 1, 2025. The tax is charged on the room charge, the full retail price the guest pays including any fees. When the intermediary handles the booking for an accommodations provider (an owner with an active lodgings tax account who collects and remits the tax), the tax collected may be remitted to the provider if an executed written agreement says who remits it, and the intermediary is then not liable for tax the provider fails to remit. The intermediary must state the tax separately on the bill. Where the owner has hired a licensed professional property management company, that company is the merchant of record. The Department of Revenue's notice describes the same rules. Which local lodgings taxes a platform collects in a given place is not stated in these sources; check with the platform and the local tax office. |
| Annual address report to the Department of Revenue | Booking platforms and owners who remit lodgings tax must report each year every address rented for more than 14 days in the previous year (some managers and hotels are exempt) [4] [5] Clause 1 Clause 2 Section 40-26-1.1(g) requires every accommodations intermediary and accommodations provider to submit an annual report, in a form set by the Department of Revenue, listing the physical address of each accommodation rented or furnished for more than 14 days during the previous year; the report is confidential taxpayer information. Exempt are licensed professional property management companies that collect and remit the state lodgings tax (or manage homes leased for a month or more as the tenant's principal residence), hotels that collect and remit the tax, tourism marketing organizations funded by the tax, and marina, tent camping and RV providers that collect and remit it. The Department of Revenue's notice describes the same reporting rule and exemptions. |
Changes
Recent and pending changes
We reviewed the Code of Ordinances title page and Chapter 24, Article VIII, Sec. 24-610 (Short-term rentals) on Municode, version July 7, 2026, fetched October 18, 2026. We haven't reviewed City Council agendas or minutes yet, so we will watch the Code and the City's pages for changes.
Ordinance O-676-26, Section I(b), adopted January 26, 2026, is the most recent ordinance listed in the history note for Sec. 24-610, and the text on this page is the version current on Municode as of July 7, 2026. What it changed is not shown here.
Sources
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This page is general information compiled from public 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.