Scottsdale Short-Term Rental Permit Guide

What the city requires

Requirements checklist

• 1
  Scottsdale STR License

  ~$250/yr. Application requires sex-offender registry check on the owner, attestation of no felony convictions, and posted emergency contact reachable 24/7.
• 2
  Neighbor notification

  Owner must mail notice to all properties within 30 ft of the STR before first booking and at every renewal. Failure to notify is a stand-alone violation.
• 3
  Combined transient lodging tax

  5.5% AZ state TPT + 1.75% Scottsdale TPT + 1.77% Maricopa County + 5.0% Scottsdale bed tax ≈ 13.92% combined. Airbnb collects state + county; Scottsdale TPT and bed tax often require direct registration with the AZ Department of Revenue + city.
• 4
  $1M liability insurance

  Either a dedicated STR policy with $1M minimum or proof of equivalent coverage from the booking platform (Airbnb Host Protection / VRBO Liability).
• 5
  Nuisance + noise ordinance

  Two verified noise/nuisance violations within 12 months suspend the license for 12 months. Three within 24 months trigger a 1-year ban on re-application.

Scottsdale enforcement is complaint-driven but well-resourced — the STR ombudsperson processes neighbor complaints and stacks them against the license. The 2022 HB 2858 update gave cities more teeth on nuisance suspensions; expect more aggressive enforcement going forward.

Official filing portal: https://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/codes/short-term-rentals