Short-term rentals in Mesa, explained properly.

The City's licensing page lists a $250.00 application/license fee, says the license is renewable annually for $250.00, that fees are paid by e-payment on submission, that a 2.37% service fee is added to credit and debit card payments, and that all fees paid are non-refundable. Chapter 15 requires the fees in the City's then current schedule of fees and charges (5-15-3(C)(6)). The fee schedule that would date the amount could not be read, so the amount is marked for review until it can be confirmed.

A complete application must include, at a minimum: the owner's name, address, phone and email (or, for a business entity, its name and its statutory agent's details); the address of the short-term rental; the Arizona TPT license number issued for the rental, including the location code where applicable; the name, address, phone and email of the emergency point of contact; an acknowledgement of agreement to comply with all applicable laws, regulations and ordinances; and the fees (5-15-3(C)). The owner or owner's designee must update the Licensing Administrator in writing within ten calendar days of any change to that information (5-15-3(E)). The City page says the application is made online and that the City may ask for a copy of the property deed or title if it cannot verify ownership.

A complete renewal application must reach the Licensing Administrator no later than 45 calendar days before the license expires. Otherwise the license is deemed expired and non-renewable, and the owner must submit a new application with all information and fees required for a new license (5-15-3(D)).

5-15-3(F) allows denial only for: failure to provide the required application information (items 1 to 5) or the required fees; a suspended license for the same rental at the time of applying; false information from the applicant; or, within the five years before the application, the owner or owner's designee having been registered as a sex offender or convicted of a felony that resulted in death or serious physical injury or involved a deadly weapon.

The emergency point of contact, who may be the owner or the owner's designee, must respond in a timely manner, no matter the time of day, and must respond in person if public safety personnel ask. A timely manner means within one hour of first contact for a complaint, incident or emergency for which public safety personnel are dispatched, and within 24 hours for all other complaints, incidences and emergencies (5-15-2, 5-15-5(A)). The contact information must be posted in a conspicuous place clearly visible on entering through the primary entrance (5-15-5(B)).

Before offering or renting a short-term rental, the owner or owner's designee must give written notice that the property will be a short-term rental. For a single-residence unit, notice goes to the owners or residents of single-residence units and lots adjacent to, directly across the street from, and diagonally across the street from the lot, and this may instead be met by notifying all owners or residents of single-residence units and lots within 200 feet of the property line. For a multiple-residence unit, notice goes to residents of all residential units on the same floor of the same building. The notice must include the City license number, the address and the emergency contact information. Within ten calendar days of a request from the Licensing Administrator, an attestation of compliance must be submitted, and a change in the contact information requires new notice within ten calendar days (5-15-4).

The owner or owner's designee must keep liability insurance covering bodily injury and property damage for each short-term rental, in an amount an insurance company considers appropriate but never less than $500,000 in the aggregate. The requirement may be met by renting through an online lodging marketplace that provides equal or greater coverage. Proof must be given within ten calendar days of a request from the Licensing Administrator (5-15-5(D)).

The owner or owner's designee must display the license number on each advertisement for the short-term rental (5-15-5(C)). Chapter 15 also requires compliance with state tax privilege licensing rules, including advertising requirements (5-15-5(E)); the state TPT advertising rule is in the Arizona section.

All persons operating, renting, occupying or using a short-term rental must comply with Mesa City Code Title 6, Chapter 12 (offensive, excessive and prohibited noises), Title 8, Chapter 6 (public nuisance, property maintenance, neighborhood preservation and animal regulations) and the Mesa Zoning Ordinance in Title 11 (5-15-5(G)). Owners must also comply with applicable laws on public health, safety, sanitation, solid waste, hazardous waste, tax privilege licensing, property tax registration, traffic control, pollution control, noise, property maintenance and nuisance abatement (5-15-5(E)). The numeric noise limits in Title 6, Chapter 12 were not read.

The owner or owner's designee must maintain with the Maricopa County Assessor all information required by A.R.S. §§ 33-1901 through 33-1907 (5-15-5(F)). This matches the county assessor rental registration step in the Arizona section.

A person found responsible for a civil violation of the chapter pays $250 (5-15-7(D)). The owner is also subject to $500 for a first violation, $1,000 for a second violation related to the same rental within 12 months and $2,000 for a third (5-15-7(E)); violations arising from the same incident response count as one. Each day a violation continues is a separate violation (5-15-7(C)). After 30 calendar days of written notice, an owner who fails to submit a complete license application pays $250 for the first month, $500 for the second, $750 for the third and $900 for the fourth and each later month, and the same schedule applies to failing to give accurate and complete emergency contact information (5-15-7(F)(1), (2)).

The Licensing Administrator must suspend a license for up to twelve months for one violation that results in or constitutes a felony by the owner or designee at the rental or in the notification area, a serious physical injury or wrongful death from knowing, intentional or reckless conduct of the owner or designee, or knowingly or intentionally allowing a barred use; or for three violations associated with the same rental within twelve months, not counting aesthetic, solid waste or vehicle parking violations unless the City shows a serious threat to public health and safety (5-15-6(A)). Before suspending, the Licensing Administrator gives written notice that includes the right to request a hearing, and requesting a hearing stays the suspension until the Civil Hearing Officer decides (5-15-6(B)). A suspended rental may not operate during the suspension (5-15-6(D)). A court may also suspend the property's use as a short-term rental for up to twelve months after a felony causing death or serious injury (5-15-7(F)(3)).

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.