4 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 1 city in Olmsted County, Minnesota.
Verified from official government sources
Olmsted County itself does not run a unified short-term rental permit program for unincorporated areas - STR rules are set by the underlying city or township. Within the City of Rochester (county seat), operators must obtain a short-term rental permit from the Community Development Department, and STRs with five or more sleeping rooms are treated as lodging requiring a state lodging license. All Minnesota STR hosts must collect and remit Minnesota's 6.875% sales tax under Minn. Stat. §297A.61 plus any applicable local lodging taxes adopted under Minn. Stat. Ch. 469.
Minn. Stat. § 297A.61, Subd. 3(g)(2)
"Sale" and "purchase" include the granting of "lodging and related services by a hotel, rooming house, resort, campground, motel, or trailer camp, including furnishing the guest of the facility with access to telecommunication services, and the granting of any similar license to use real property in a specific facility, other than the renting or leasing of it for a continuous period of 30 days ...
Short-term rentals in unincorporated Olmsted County owe Minnesota's 6.875% state sales tax plus the county's 0.5% combined transit sales tax (two 0.25% taxes for Destination Medical Center and transportation), for a 7.375% effective rate on stays under 30 days. Rentals in Rochester also owe Rochester's 7% city lodging tax (total 14.375%). Marketplaces (Airbnb, Vrbo) collect state-administered taxes; locally administered city lodging taxes are remitted by the host.
Minn. Dept. of Revenue, Sales of Residential Short-Term Rentals Guide
The property owner must register as a retailer to collect, report, and remit taxes on the full sales price of lodging and related services. Alternatively, the accommodations intermediary must register as a retailer to collect, report, and remit taxes on the full sales price of lodging and related services. Hosts are responsible for collecting the general rate sales tax and any applicable local ...
Olmsted County's Chapter 1400 Zoning Ordinance requires off-street parking for residential dwellings in unincorporated areas it administers (Eyota, Marion, Oronoco, Quincy townships); no STR-specific multiplier applies. Inside Rochester, City Code Chapter 7-9-14 requires STR hosts to submit and maintain a documented parking plan and provide off-street parking or alternative arrangements for guests as a license condition.
Olmsted County imposes no STR-specific overnight guest cap in unincorporated areas it directly zones (Eyota, Marion, Oronoco, Quincy townships). Maximum occupancy defaults to the Minnesota State Building Code, the Minnesota State Fire Code (NFPA 101), and on-site sewage treatment system design capacity under MN Rules Ch. 7080. Inside Rochester, the STR ordinance (City Code 7-9-14) requires applicants to declare maximum occupancy on their license.
1 cities in Olmsted County have their own short-term rentals rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
See every category we cover for Olmsted County — parking, noise, fences, fires, animals, pools, and more.
Olmsted County Ordinance Hub →