Winnebago County, IL Short-Term Rentals: Occupancy Limits (2026)

Illinois has no statewide STR occupancy preemption, and Illinois counties under 55 ILCS 5 (Counties Code) only regulate land use in unincorporated territory. Winnebago County's Chapter 90 Unified Development Ordinance lists Vacation Rentals as a Special Use in the R-A (Residential-Agricultural) district under Article 8 Table 8.1 and prohibits them outright in the R-R sub-district, but it does not publish a numeric 'two persons per bedroom plus two' or similar overnight cap that applies countywide. Instead, the binding occupancy figure for any approved vacation rental is set in two ways: (1) any specific occupancy condition the Zoning Board of Appeals attaches to the Special Use Permit at the public hearing, and (2) the minimum sleeping-room floor area standards in the building code adopted by Winnebago County (typically derived from the International Property Maintenance Code, which requires at least 70 square feet for the first occupant of a sleeping room and 50 additional square feet per additional occupant). Operators in incorporated municipalities (Rockford, Loves Park, Machesney Park, South Beloit, Cherry Valley, etc.) follow that city's separate occupancy rules. The county's hotel/motel tax worksheet treats a 'rental' as any stay under 30 consecutive days for tax purposes, but does not itself set a guest cap. Confirm any Special Use Permit occupancy condition with Planning & Zoning at 815-319-4350 before listing.