STRWATCH.AI / UT / Moab

Is a short-term rental legal in Moab, UT?

HEAVILY REGULATED

Moab prohibits residential rentals of 30 consecutive days or less in the zones listed in MMC 17.09.700 and other zones without an express permitted use.

See permits and requirements

Sources checked20 open items listed below

MMC 17.09.700 prohibits STRs in A-2, C-1, C-3, C-5, FW, I-1, R&D-1, R-2, R-3, R-4, RA-1 and other zones without an express permitted use. It references B&B/guest-apartment exceptions, but current Chapter 17.70 is ADUs (its former B&B text was repealed in 2010), and Chapter 17.71 includes a section titled 'Guest apartments and short-term boarding houses not a permitted use' whose operative text was inaccessible. These references do not establish an available new-host pathway. Current C-3/C-4 sections permit mapped established accommodations but no new units through that pathway. C-3 adaptive-recreation accommodation serves qualifying participants on the provider's parcel, with stays no longer than 30 days. The 10-person default may be increased with acceptable fire suppression and written Fire Chief approval, then City Treasurer approval (5.67.100.D). No universal primary-residence requirement was established; Type 3 internal ADUs require owner occupancy and expressly prohibit nightly rentals. Exactly 30 days remains within municipal nightly-rental regulation but meets the state lodging-tax duration exemption; neither boundary supplies a universal property/licensing exemption, so min_stay_exempt_days is null. Conditional fire approval means max_guests has no universal fixed value and is null.

Permits and requirements

Nightly Rental Business License $250 initial + $52/year renewal for four units or fewer
City of Moab (City Treasurer)
Renewal: Annual; nightly-rental section says July 1, general-license section says on or before June 30—confirm with Treasurer
MMC 5.67.020 requires the property owner to hold a separate license per property; an agent may apply. An individual owner may list up to four locations on one application, with a fee per location; property-management companies cannot combine properties in one license. Submit applicant/entity/contact details, address, business description, applicable sales-tax registration and supplemental code/zoning/parking/access information to the City Treasurer (5.04.030). Complete signed applications with fees paid are approved or denied within ten business days; conditional approval is possible. Licenses cannot transfer between people or properties; a buyer intending to continue nightly rentals must apply within ten business days of conveyance (5.67.065). The 2026-06 schedule lists the stated fee category. A D.B.A. must be registered with Utah Commerce. The current 5.67.020 requires separate licenses, not the older City redline's combined-license/shared-tax-ID wording; the current text controls. General 5.04.060 requires visible display, license year July 1–June 30, renewal by June 30, a 15% late charge after 30 days and cancellation August 15 if unpaid. Automatic renewal requires unchanged business and no outstanding violations, City debts or unremitted sales taxes. General annual fees after January 1 are prorated 50%; confirm any nightly-license-specific application with Treasurer. Under 5.04.040 denial may follow false submissions, uncorrected violations, unpaid City charges, missing required licenses or inconsistent zoning; denied-license fees are refunded within five business days. 5.04.080 identifies corresponding revocation grounds, tax noncompliance and unlawful/nuisance use. The older non-redline City-hosted chapter links denial appeals to 5.04.050 and revocation/cure to 5.04.090; current operative procedures could not be retrieved, so hearing, notice, cure and appeal deadlines remain unverified. General 5.04.060.E requires an address-change application before operating at the new location; the fee schedule lists $50 for a business-license change of address. This does not override the nightly-license prohibition on transfer to another property. The ordinance's passage clause says immediate effect, while its attached certificate states July 1, 2026; both dates have passed, but the discrepancy is unresolved. The applicable sales-tax license number is due within 30 days of application. Applicant-requested cancellation before approval refunds 50% of the license fee; no refund is granted after approval (5.04.030.E), distinct from the denied-application refund.
official source
Underlying Zoning Compliance / Established Overnight Accommodations status Cost not verified
City of Moab Planning & Zoning
MMC 5.67.100.A makes underlying land-use permission a license prerequisite. MMC 17.09.700 supplies the zone prohibition and qualified exceptions; C-3/C-4 permit mapped established overnight accommodations but prohibit additional units through that pathway. The C-3 adaptive-recreation use permits same-parcel accommodations only for qualifying participants. The B&B reference to Chapter 17.70 is inconsistent with its current ADU text; new B&B and guest-apartment eligibility remains unresolved. No address-specific planning approval cost or recurring renewal was established.
official source
Pre-licensing Building/Fire/Health Inspection Cost not verified
City of Moab Building Inspector, Fire Chief, and Health Department
Renewal: As often as necessary for enforcement (MMC 5.67.030.C)
MMC 5.67.030.C requires plans/property approval and pre-license building, fire and health inspections, with later inspections as necessary for enforcement. MMC 5.67.100.B/E requires applicable safety codes and bedroom smoke/CO detectors. The fee schedule lists $85 for inspections without a specifically listed fee, but a total STR inspection charge covering all three agencies was not established; cost remains null.
official source
Sanitary sewer impact fee; separate water impact fees may apply $3,569/unit for 1 bedroom or smaller with kitchen; $4,283/unit for 2 or more bedrooms with kitchen within City limits (2026 sanitary sewer schedule)
City of Moab
Ordinance 2026-06, 3.50.160, lists these sanitary sewer impact amounts for nightly-rental dwellings, not a combined water/sewer charge. Separate culinary-water impact fees are meter-based under 3.50.140. MMC 5.67.100.G references Chapter 13.25; that chapter's applicability, offsets and exemptions sections could not be read, so whether conversion of a particular existing unit owes new fees and the total water/sewer charge remain unresolved. The same table lists within-City 2027 sewer amounts of $3,611 for one bedroom or smaller with kitchen and $4,333 for two or more bedrooms with kitchen; the precise start date of that column was not established. MMC 5.67.100.H also requires ongoing water and sewer service rates under Chapter 13.24, separate from impact fees.
official source
State lodging-tax registration, collection, returns and records $0 state sales-tax license fee (59-12-106(2)(l)); conditional delinquency/compliance bond is separate
Utah State Tax Commission
Renewal: Returns/payment on the Commission-assigned filing schedule; quarterly statutory default, monthly when prior-year liability is $50,000 or more
Register through Utah TAP when required to collect tax; marketplace-only sellers need no sales-tax license for facilitated sales under Publication 71, but Utah-nexus sellers making nonmarketplace sales do. License holders must file returns even when marketplace sales are omitted; a marketplace-only period does not eliminate that duty. Hosts must collect/remit taxable direct bookings; do not collect tax a qualifying facilitator must collect. Section 59-12-107 requires quarterly returns/payment by the last day of the following month unless another period is assigned; 59-12-108 requires monthly filing at the stated threshold. Publication 56 identifies TC-62M/TC-62S sales and TC-62T transient-room returns. Taxes collected are trust funds, not business income; excess collections must be remitted. Keep tax-supporting books and records for the applicable assessment period under 59-1-1406; generally three years after filing under 59-1-1410 (an early-filed return is deemed filed on its prescribed filing deadline), but no-return/fraud cases and written extensions can extend it. Preserve direct versus facilitated booking records and exemption evidence. Section 59-12-106 makes licenses nonassignable, requires separate business-location licenses, and keeps a license valid until business cessation, address change or revocation; it charges no license fee. Delinquency/compliance cases can require a $25,000–$500,000 bond, subject to statutory waiver conditions. Exact standalone zero-sales/zero-tax return guidance remains unresolved; no universal fixed retention period is asserted. Section 59-12-107(3)(c) requires a tax receipt or a separately stated invoice tax item identifying Utah and the seller's sales/use-tax license number.
official source
Lodging-tax exemptions, taxable fees and refund documentation Cost not verified
Utah State Tax Commission
Renewal: Exemption certificate renewal required when more than 12 months elapse between transactions (59-12-106(3)(f)); no universal annual refund renewal
Publication 56 treats cleaning, pet, reservation and resort charges as taxable lodging charges; parking, lockout and childcare charges are not taxable under its table; laundry is subject to sales tax but not transient-room tax. Mandatory tips are taxable; voluntary tips not included on the invoice are not. A full-room cancellation/no-show charge remains taxable; a lesser cancellation charge is not. Manager-to-owner administrative/commission charges are not lodging taxes. Document federal-agency or diplomatic exemptions with the applicable certificate and qualifying payment/card evidence. Utah/local government lodging generally pays first and seeks a qualifying refund. Religious/charitable exemptions require a Commission exemption number and certificate, for charges below $1,000, tax must be paid unless the certificate and a written contract are already on file; for charges of $1,000 or more, a certificate may be accepted at the time of sale. Otherwise, qualifying organizations may seek a refund. Employee reimbursement does not itself exempt lodging. Complimentary rooms without consideration are exempt; barter is not a complimentary room. For overpaid sales tax, request seller credit/refund first; Commission claims use TC-62PR and payment/exemption proof. Section 59-1-1410 generally allows claims until the later of three years from return due date (including extension) or two years from payment. Denied-refund petitions generally are due 30 days after notice mailing, 90 days if addressed outside the US/DC; follow the actual notice and statutory exceptions. Marketplace refunds are requested from the facilitator. Section 59-12-106(3) permits timely certificate substantiation and requires certificate renewal when more than 12 months elapse between transactions; a recurring relationship within 12 months does not require renewal or updates. Separate exemption/refund processing charges were not established.
official source

The full picture

Moab prohibits residential rentals of 30 consecutive days or less in the zones listed in MMC 17.09.700 and other zones without an express permitted use. Existing mapped overnight accommodations in C-3 and C-4 may continue without adding units, and qualifying adaptive-recreation accommodations are permitted in C-3. A qualifying property needs an owner-held nightly-rental license, annual renewal (the nightly-rental and general-license sections state different deadlines), and building, fire, and health approvals. The adopted 2026 fee schedule lists $250 initial and $52 renewal for four units or fewer and a maximum illegal-STR civil assessment of $750 per day per infraction. Moab's sales/use rate is 9.35%, with separate transient-room taxes totaling 7.07%; lodging of 30 days or longer is tax-exempt even though the City's STR definition includes exactly 30 days. New hosted or whole-home eligibility requires an address-specific zoning determination; the B&B exception's reference to Chapter 17.70 conflicts with that chapter's current ADU text.

Taxes on guests & hosts

TaxRateApplies toPlatform collectsOfficial source
Utah State Transient Room Tax 1.07% Temporary lodging stays of fewer than 30 consecutive days; Utah Publication 56 exempts stays of 30 consecutive days or longer Not verified source
Grand County Transient Room Tax (county-wide) 4.50% Temporary lodging stays of fewer than 30 consecutive days within Grand County, including Moab; stays of 30 consecutive days or longer are exempt Not verified source
Moab Municipal Transient Room Tax 1.50% Temporary lodging stays of fewer than 30 consecutive days within Moab city limits; stays of 30 consecutive days or longer are exempt Not verified source
Combined State & Local Sales and Use Tax (incl. Resort Community Tax) 9.35% Taxable temporary-lodging room charges and taxable lodging fees for stays shorter than 30 consecutive days; not every ancillary fee is taxable. Lodging stays of 30 consecutive days or longer are exempt under Utah Publication 56. Not verified source

Enforcement

PenaltiesMMC 5.67.090 classifies unlicensed nightly rentals as a Class A misdemeanor, with each continuing day separately punishable, and permits civil injunctions and reasonable attorney fees/court costs. Ordinance 2026-06, 3.50.180 (maximum civil fines), lists illegal STRs at $750/day/infraction and business-license noncompliance at 200% of the license fee per violation. No criminal dollar maximum is asserted. State tax enforcement is separate: 59-1-401 imposes late-filing penalties of the greater of $20 or 2%, 5%, or 10% of unpaid tax for 1–5, 6–15, or over 15 days late; amended and no-tax-due returns are excluded. Late-payment penalties have their own statutory triggers, including timely-filed unpaid returns and 90-day delinquency after late filing. Negligence adds 10%, intentional disregard 15%, evasion the greater of $500/period or 50%, and fraud the greater of $500/period or 100%. Commission guidance lists 6% simple interest for 2026 and reasonable-cause waiver relief; do not treat these as one automatic combined assessment.
Platform liabilityUtah Publication 71 states marketplace facilitators exceeding $100,000 in Utah sales in the previous or current year must collect sales and sales-related taxes, including transient-room tax; out-of-state facilitators have a collection-start grace period. Named-platform collection for each Moab tax remains unresolved. Utah Code 10-8-85.4 prohibits municipal regulation of STR websites, permits nonbinding removal requests identifying the listing URL and licensing/zoning violation, and limits listing-only punishment; subsection (8) excepts internal ADUs with a recorded municipal notice.
NotesMMC 5.67.100 requires the owner/manager to respond to complaints within one hour and supply occupant information on request to police, emergency or City personnel. Licensing cannot authorize a prohibited land use. Code Compliance identifies residential-zone STRs and unlicensed operation as enforcement priorities. Under Utah Code 10-8-85.4, listings can support enforcement when additional violation information exists; the internal-ADU exception limits the general listing-only protection. Commission tax appeals generally require a written petition within 30 days of notice, identifying the taxpayer, assessment period/amount and disputed notice; statutory outside-US/DC and other exceptions govern. Current municipal denial/revocation appeal and hearing procedures remain a retrieval gap rather than an assumed deadline. MMC 5.67.100.C prohibits renting to an individual or group for more than 30 consecutive days under the nightly-rental license.

What we could not verify (20)

  • Third-party vendor guides claim Moab's nightly rental license application requires proof of insurance and a local contact; I could not verify an insurance requirement in the official code text I retrieved (MMC 5.67.030 references the general application items in MMC 5.04.030, which do not explicitly list insurance) — insurance was therefore omitted from requirements[] rather than guessed.
  • I could not fully enumerate which zones, if any, currently allow brand-new (non-grandfathered) nightly rental units to be created; I confirmed only that C-3, C-4, and RC zones permit 'Established Overnight Accommodations' as grandfathered legal-conforming uses (no new units), and did not exhaustively check every zone chapter in Title 17 for a possible zone that still permits new overnight accommodations by right.
  • Current real-world accessibility of the Ch. 17.70 (bed & breakfast) and Ch. 17.71 (guest apartment) pathways for a new host today was not independently verified — I confirmed only that these chapters exist and are cited as exceptions in MMC 17.09.700.
  • MMC 17.09.700 still cites a bed-and-breakfast exception tied to Chapter 17.70, but current Chapter 17.70 covers ADUs and notes the former B&B chapter was repealed in 2010. Sections 17.71.020/.030/.040 failed retrieval. Confirm existing versus new B&B/guest-apartment eligibility with Planning; do not treat the reference as an open permitting pathway.
  • Current code pages report compilation dates ranging from June 9 to August 25, 2026. The 2026 ordinance index includes a September 22 enactment unrelated to STRs, but an exhaustive post-compilation amendment and pending-litigation/docket search was not established. Empty pending_changes does not prove no pending changes or lawsuits.
  • No citywide numeric permit cap or waitlist was established. License nontransferability and buyer application rules are documented, but any address-specific grandfathered-use succession restrictions remain unresolved.
  • STR-specific insurance, a required local-contact radius, parking-space totals and noise thresholds were not established. The code does require one-hour owner/manager response and allows supplemental parking/compliance information in license applications.
  • Sanitary sewer impact amounts are documented, but Chapter 13.25 applicability, exemptions and offsets sections were inaccessible; an existing unit's liability, separate water impact charge and combined agency inspection cost remain unresolved.
  • Utah facilitator duty does not establish Airbnb or Vrbo collection for each Moab tax; collectedByPlatform remains null for every tax.
  • Private HOA declarations, recorded covenants and leases were not obtained for any property; municipal permission does not establish private authorization.
  • No universal primary-residence rule was established across all eligible lodging categories; the primary_residence_required field remains null.
  • The default ten-person occupancy rule has a conditional Fire Chief/City Treasurer exception; max_guests is null because no universal fixed maximum was established.
  • Municipal nightly-rental regulation includes exactly 30 days, while the state lodging-tax exemption starts at 30 days. No single blanket property/licensing exemption threshold exists; min_stay_exempt_days is null.
  • Current 5.04.050/.090 and 5.67.050/.060/.070/.080 repeatedly failed retrieval. An older City-hosted non-redline chapter identifies the denial-appeal and revocation/cure cross-references, but current notice, hearing, cure and appeal deadlines need City confirmation.
  • General zero-sales/zero-tax return guidance was not established from an accessible current operative source. Publication 71 does expressly require licensed marketplace sellers to file returns without reporting facilitated sales. Account-specific filing assignments, extended record periods and exemption/refund eligibility require verification.
  • Current Publication 25 PDF/HTML is marked DRAFT PENDING PUBLIC MEETING and was not used as enacted authority. Current statutes, Publications 56/71/58 and Commission registration/refund/appeal guidance support the retained tax duties.
  • No separate state exemption/refund processing cost was established; cost remains null. Certificate renewal is conditional on the transaction interval, not a universal annual charge.
  • Nightly-license renewal section 5.67.040 says July 1, while general 5.04.060.A says on or before June 30 (automatic renewal in subsection B says July 1). Confirm the applicable deadline with the Treasurer rather than assuming July 1 is always timely.
  • Ordinance 2026-06 says effective immediately upon passage, but the attached certificate states July 1, 2026. Both dates precede this review; the historical effective-date discrepancy remains unresolved.
  • The sewer table also lists 2027 within-City amounts ($3,611/$4,333 by bedroom category), but the precise effective date of the 2027 column and ongoing Chapter 13.24 water/sewer rates were not established.

Sources

A markdown mirror of this page lives at /moab-ut.md for AI tools and researchers.

STRWatch publishes educational information about short-term rental regulation, checked against the official sources linked above as of the date shown. It is not legal advice, and rules change — a city can move between the times we check it. For decisions with money at stake, confirm with the authority linked above or a local attorney.