Short-term rentals in Salt Lake County, explained properly.

The licensee must designate a responsible party who is an individual or property management company residing or maintaining an office in Salt Lake County. The responsible party is personally liable for failure to properly manage the short-term rental, must be available by telephone or otherwise twenty-four hours per day, and must be able to respond to inquiries within twenty minutes of receipt of an inquiry (Sec. 5.19.070(C)). The application also requires the name of a property manager (Sec. 5.19.030(A)(4)).

One nameplate sign shall be permanently attached to the building in a conspicuous location near the front entrance. It must give the name and telephone number of at least one responsible individual located within the county who can be contacted twenty-four hours a day, contain the occupant load of the building as allowed by the International Building Code, be made of durable, weather resistant material, not exceed three inches by five inches, and contain no advertising (Sec. 5.19.080). The zoning chapter separately provides that a short-term rental use shall not have any signs on the premises that advertise the use (Sec. 19.04.547(E)).

Sec. 5.19.070(B) says the access to the rental and its layout shall be designed so that noise and physical trespass from the rental unit is not likely to be a substantial intrusion on adjoining properties. If the unit shares an access, hallway, common wall or driveway with another dwelling, written consent of the owner of the other dwelling is required.

Sec. 19.04.547(C): structures must be properly maintained, painted and kept in good repair, and grounds and landscaping properly maintained and watered so the use does not detract from the neighborhood; required parking areas and access must be maintained and available at all times, parking must be contained on the site and not allowed on public rights-of-way; snow must be removed from sidewalks and driveways within one hour after the snow has ceased falling, except that for a storm between 5 p.m. and 6 a.m. the sidewalk must be cleaned before 8 a.m. the next morning. Sec. 19.04.547(D): occupants shall not create excessive noise that is incompatible with adjacent land uses. Sec. 19.04.547(F): the use as a short-term rental shall not change the appearance of the dwelling or property for residential purposes. Sec. 19.04.547(G): outdoor pools, hot tubs or spas shall not be used between ten p.m. and eight a.m.

Sec. 5.19.070(A): periodic housekeeping service, including removal of trash to the nearest collection point, must be provided by the owner on at least a weekly basis. A short-term rental may not be used for commercial purposes not otherwise permitted in the zone, for distribution of retail products or personal services to invitees for marketing or similar purposes, or for the outdoor display of goods and merchandise for sale.

Sec. 5.19.090: for purposes of prosecution of violations of Chapter 5.19, each day that any violation occurs, or that applicable taxes and fees are unpaid, is deemed to constitute a separate violation.

Sec. 5.19.040(B): a license that has been granted may be suspended or revoked for any violation of the provisions of the chapter, or for any of the reasons in Section 5.07.020 of the title (not read for this page). Sec. 5.19.040(C): any appeal of a decision to deny, suspend or revoke a license is heard under the procedures in Secs. 5.02.140 through 5.02.180, which were not read for this page.

The Utah State Tax Commission says amounts paid for temporary lodging (a hotel, motel, inn, tourist home or similar accommodation for less than 30 consecutive days) are subject to both sales tax and transient room tax. Stays of 30 consecutive days or longer are exempt from both. Charges such as cleaning fees are taxable for both sales tax and transient room tax. Sales tax is reported on form TC-62M or TC-62S and transient room tax on TC-62T.

The Utah State Tax Commission lists the state sales and use tax rate as 4.85%. Local sales taxes are added on top and vary by city and county; the Tax Commission publishes the combined rate for each location in quarterly rate charts at tax.utah.gov/sales/rates. Lodging is taxed at the rate for the rental's location, not the owner's mailing address.

Transient room tax is charged on stays of less than 30 consecutive days, in addition to sales and other applicable taxes. The Tax Commission says the rate for a location may combine: a 1.07% statewide transient room tax; an extra 0.25% state transient room tax in Salt Lake County; a county-wide transient room tax (up to 4.5% in counties other than Salt Lake County; Salt Lake County imposes 4.25% plus a 0.5% tourism transient room tax); and a city or town transient room tax of up to 1% (with an additional amount allowed for cities that meet certain requirements). Check the Tax Commission's current rate chart for the exact rate at a location.

The Tax Commission says every seller with an established presence in Utah must have a Utah sales tax license, and lists accommodations of less than 30 consecutive days among the businesses that typically must register. You apply online through the Taxpayer Access Point (tap.utah.gov). Sellers whose sales all go through a marketplace facilitator do not need a license for those facilitated sales unless they also make sales outside the marketplace.

Under Utah's marketplace rules, a marketplace facilitator is treated as the seller of what it facilitates and must collect sales tax and all sales-related taxes, including transient room tax. Sellers cannot opt out of having the facilitator collect, and are not liable for taxes the facilitator must collect. A host with a Utah sales tax license still files returns but does not report sales made through a marketplace.