Short-term rentals in Minturn, explained properly.

Sec. 6-7-30(d) sets a fee of $300 per bedroom/sleeping room for any short-term rental license issued under the article, inclusive of any inspection fees applicable under the Code. If the license is denied, the application fee is refunded minus the fees attributable to inspections. The number of bedrooms is taken from the County Assessor's records (Sec. 6-7-30(e)). We could not read the Town's fee schedule, so we cannot confirm this is the current charged amount or its effective date.

The owner provides proof of active lodging, local and state sales tax licenses; evidence of ownership; a site plan showing on-site parking spaces and bedrooms; and proof of a contract with a Local Property Manager within 50 road miles (Sec. 6-7-30(b), (c), (e), (g)). On filing a complete application the owner schedules fire and CO inspections with the Building Official and Code Enforcement and a parking inspection with the Code Enforcement Officer; no license is granted unless the property is certified in compliance with all applicable provisions of the Code (Sec. 6-7-30(h)). The Town Clerk may require additional information (Sec. 6-7-30(l)). The Town's application form was not available to us.

No property is licensed unless the owner has owned it for two or more years before the application is filed (Sec. 6-7-40(d)). A transfer to a trust of which the owner is the beneficiary, or to an entity the owner majority-owns, does not break the ownership period. The rule does not stop long-term rentals (over 30 days) in the first two years. Exceptions: the 100-Block Zones are exempt, but only on second floors and above and only if there is an active, licensed, sales-tax-generating commercial use on the ground floor; and an owner who uses 33% or less of the property's square-foot floor area for short-term rental may obtain a license for up to that share without prior ownership limits.

Sec. 6-7-40(f) caps licensed short-term rentals in the Town at 10% of residential housing units or 50, whichever is fewer, at any time. The text we read does not say how the cap is applied to a waiting list or in what order applicants are served.

A community housing unit is a residential dwelling unit in the Town that is deed-restricted under the Town's Community Housing Requirements and Guidelines and Chapter 16, Article 26 (Sec. 6-7-20). No unit designated by the Town as community housing under Chapter 16, Article 26 is eligible for short-term rental (Sec. 6-7-40(e)). The Town's stated purpose includes prohibiting the short-term rental of community housing (Sec. 6-7-10).

The owner must give the Town proof of a contract or agreement with a Local Property Manager who resides within 50 road miles of the Town (Sec. 6-7-30(g)). A Local Property Manager is a person or entity with a physical place of business or residence within 50 road miles of the Town, named on the license, who is the contract person responsible for maintenance, snow removal and complaints; if that person is not the owner, they must be licensed as may be required under state law (Sec. 6-7-20). The license shows the manager's name and contact information (Sec. 6-7-50).

The short-term rental license is nontransferable with the sale of the property (Sec. 6-7-40(d)) and licenses are nontransferrable and nonassignable (Sec. 6-7-60(b)). A new owner must apply for their own license and meet the two-year ownership rule unless an exception applies.

Sec. 6-7-40(c) allows no more than three people per bedroom, including children, to occupy a short-term rental. The license states the maximum number of occupants and any parking conditions (Sec. 6-7-50).

Sec. 6-7-40(b) requires parking consistent with Article 16 of the Town Code, and the application includes a parking inspection by the Code Enforcement Officer. For a property built before the adoption of the 1982 Zoning Codes that does not meet the parking requirements, staff may approve the license without meeting on-site parking requirements (Sec. 6-7-30(f)). Article 16 itself was not read, so the number of spaces required is not stated here.

Before licensing, the owner schedules fire and CO inspections with the Building Official and Code Enforcement and a parking inspection with the Code Enforcement Officer (Sec. 6-7-30(h)). Each year the owner must schedule and permit an inspection at least 60 days before the renewal date, covering fire and CO detectors, parking, and Town building and zoning code compliance; the inspection fee is included with the license fee the Town sets (Sec. 6-7-30(i)). A working fire extinguisher must be kept in the unit (Sec. 6-7-30(k)).

Each short-term rental must post the local license number and any license conditions (for example maximum occupancy and parking limits) inside the residential unit, and the same information must appear prominently in any advertisement, printed or online (Sec. 6-7-30(j)). The physical property address of the unit must also be posted (Sec. 6-7-30(k)).

Licenses are valid until March 31 of the succeeding year. A holder may apply to renew no more than 30 days before expiration and may rely on the same application materials unless circumstances have materially changed. A license gives no property interest in renewal (Sec. 6-7-60(a)).

The owner of a licensed property is liable for any violation of Chapters 4, 6, 7, 11, 13, 16 and 18 of the Code on the property and must abate any nuisance or violation (Sec. 6-7-80(a)). Three or more violations of the Code or license on the licensed property are grounds for revocation, and the property is not eligible for a license for two years after revocation (Sec. 6-7-80(b)). Appeal of a revocation follows Section 6-1-80 of the Code (Sec. 6-7-80(c)). The Town's fine schedule for short-term rental violations was not in the pages we read.

Anyone providing taxable lodging services collects the tax and files a return with the Town Treasurer on or before the 20th of each month for the previous month (Sec. 4-4-50(a)). The Treasurer may accept returns at longer intervals on written request, and may allow returns at intervals of up to three months where the monthly tax is under $50 (Sec. 4-4-50(b)). If a return is not made within five business days after it is due, the Treasurer estimates the tax and adds a penalty of $15 or 10%, whichever is greater, plus interest of 1% a month; fraud adds 100% of the deficiency (Sec. 4-4-110(b)). The Town's returns portal and forms were not available to us. A short-term rental license holder must collect and submit all applicable local, state and federal taxes (Sec. 6-7-70).

Colorado charges its 2.9% state sales tax on the entire amount charged for rooms and accommodations. A stay may also owe local sales taxes that the Colorado Department of Revenue collects for counties and special districts, and any sales tax of a home-rule city that collects its own tax (see below).

State sales tax does not apply to a room or accommodations rented to a person who is a permanent resident of it and has a written agreement to occupy it for at least 30 consecutive days. Shorter stays are taxed.

The Colorado Department of Revenue says anyone who offers rooms or accommodations for rent must get a Colorado sales tax license and collect sales tax on taxable rentals. A seller who makes sales only through a marketplace may be exempt from licensing, collection and filing if the marketplace collects all state and state-administered local sales taxes for them. The license costs $16 (prorated) plus a $50 deposit, a separate license is needed for each business location, and licenses expire on December 31 of odd-numbered years.

For rooms rented through a marketplace (including online platforms), the marketplace facilitator must collect and remit the state sales tax and the local sales taxes the state collects, plus any county lodging tax and local marketing district tax. City taxes in home-rule cities are separate (see below).

The Colorado Department of Revenue does not administer any lodging tax imposed by a city or town, and it does not collect sales tax for home-rule cities that collect their own. Those taxes are licensed, filed and paid with the city.

Colorado counties may add a county lodging tax, regional transportation authorities a visitor benefit tax, and local marketing districts a marketing tax on rooms subject to state sales tax. County lodging and visitor benefit taxes are filed quarterly with the Department of Revenue on form DR 1485; the Department's DR 1003 publication lists the rates.