Des Plaines, IL Short-Term Rentals: Permit Requirements (2026)

Des Plaines does not regulate short-term rentals (Airbnb/Vrbo-type vacation rentals) distinctly from long-term rentals. Per the city's August 10, 2023 Community and Economic Development Department memorandum, the current rental licensing rules in City Code Chapter 4-17 ('Residential Properties Used for Rentals') define a 'Rental Property' as one rented for 'part of the year or all year,' meaning there is no minimum rental period and a short-term rental falls under the same license as any other rental. The owner, agent, or designee must attend the City's Crime Free Multi-Housing Program (Phase 1) seminar before a Residential Rental Property License is issued or renewed (Code Sec. 4-17-3). Licenses are issued under Sec. 4-17-1, are valid for no more than one year, expire December 31 each year, are not transferable to another person or property, and a 10% fee discount is available to owners who complete all three certification levels of the Crime Free Multi-Housing Program. The City has interpreted and enforced the code so that the entire residential unit must be rented; renting individual rooms or portions of a residence is prohibited, and applicants must sign an affidavit to that effect. In 2017 staff drafted (but the Council indefinitely deferred) zoning and business-regulation amendments that would have defined short-term rentals separately using a 30-day threshold, so as of 2023 no STR-specific ordinance exists.