10 verified short-term rentals rules for Sammamish, Washington, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Sammamish has no dedicated short-term rental permit or licensing chapter in its municipal code. Operators are governed by general residential zoning (SMC Titles 21A/21B), a citywide business license, and Washington's statewide short-term rental law, RCW Chapter 64.37, rather than a standalone STR permit.
Short-term rental guests in Sammamish are subject to the city's public disturbance noise code (SMC Chapter 8.15). The city does not enforce general noise itself; it directs residents to call the Sammamish Police non-emergency line at (206) 296-3311. There is no STR-specific noise provision.
Short-term stays under 30 days in Sammamish are taxable transient lodging. Operators owe Washington retail sales tax and retailing B&O tax, plus King County lodging and convention/trade center taxes. The only city fee is the $15.00 annual business license. State law requires operators or platforms to remit all applicable taxes.
Sammamish has no STR-specific parking standard. Guest parking is governed by the city's general residential zoning and parking provisions in SMC Title 21A and by neighborhood street-parking rules. State STR law (RCW 64.37) imposes no parking mandate, so the practical rules come from residential parking and right-of-way standards.
Sammamish sets no STR-specific guest cap in its code. Washington State law, RCW 64.37.030, requires every short-term rental to post a maximum occupancy limit inside the unit. Underlying residential building and zoning standards (SMC Titles 21A/21B) determine the practical limit; the posted occupancy must be honored.
Washington law requires every short-term rental operator to maintain primary liability insurance of at least $1,000,000, or to book only through a platform providing equal or greater coverage (RCW 64.37.050). Sammamish adds no separate insurance rule, but the statewide $1 million minimum applies to all Sammamish hosts.
Sammamish sets no annual night cap on short-term rentals. The only night-based threshold is the state definition: a stay of fewer than 30 consecutive nights is a short-term rental under RCW 64.37.010. There is no published limit on how many nights per year a property may be rented.
Sammamish has no STR-specific registration program, but operators generally need a city business license endorsement, and short-term rental platforms must register with the Washington Department of Revenue under RCW 64.37.040. The controlling registration is state and business-license based, not a dedicated STR registry.
Sammamish does not require a host to be present during stays. Unhosted, whole-home rentals are allowed. Washington's RCW 64.37.030 requires only that the operator provide guest contact information for someone available to respond at the rental during the stay, not that the host physically stay on site.
Sammamish imposes no primary-residence requirement on short-term rentals. Neither the municipal code nor Washington's RCW 64.37 limits hosting to a host's primary home, so both owner-occupied and non-owner-occupied STRs are allowed subject to zoning, business licensing, and state safety and tax duties.
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Sammamish city rules.
Short-Term Rentals in King County →