Clearwater, FL Rental Property Rules: Rental Registration (2026)

Clearwater's Business Tax Receipt Schedule opens its rental category at section 090.000, 'Rental Property,' which separately lists banquet-hall rentals at $127.50 before turning to residential leasing in section 091.000. That section covers single-family homes and duplexes rented for 30 days or more, charging $31.50 for one to five units on the same or contiguous parcels and $1.70 for each unit beyond five, the same tier structure the schedule uses for apartments (091.020), condos and townhouses (091.040), and the commercial and 'not otherwise classified' rental categories (091.080, 091.090).

Section 29.30 of the Code supplies the underlying legal requirement: any person maintaining a business location in the city, including a rental property, must first obtain the receipt and pay the fee set in Appendix A before operating, and must display the receipt in a prominent location within the rental business. Unlike the short-term classification in section 091.010, the standard 30-day-or-more category carries no Planning Department approval note, only the general licensing process under section 29.31, which still requires zoning verification that the rental use is allowed at that address under Community Development Code section 4-205.

The receipt is not transferable to a new owner without paying the transfer fee under section 29.38, and it lapses each year on September 30 unless renewed.