Palm Coast, FL Short-Term Rentals: Occupancy Limits (2026)

Sec. 17-71 sets the use and occupancy standards every short-term vacation rental in Palm Coast must follow. Paragraph (2), Maximum occupancy, limits occupancy to two transient occupants per sleeping room or habitable space, with a maximum limit of ten transient occupants per short-term vacation rental, and it excludes transient occupants who are three years of age or younger from that count. 'Sleeping room' is a defined term at Sec. 17-67: it must sit along an exterior wall, have a closet and a door or door-ready opening, and have an emergency escape and rescue opening under the Florida Building Code; hallways, bathrooms, kitchens, living rooms, dens and similar spaces do not qualify.

The occupancy cap is not just a house rule; it has to appear in the rental agreement itself. Sec. requires the sample lease submitted with the registration application to state the maximum occupancy, and Sec. 17-68(a)(9) requires that any advertising for the unit conform to the certificate, particularly on maximum occupancy. If the number of sleeping rooms, habitable space, or the maximum occupancy of a registered rental is later increased, Sec. 17-69(a) requires a new application covering the same Sec. 17-68(a) requirements before that change can take effect.