Topeka, KS Short-Term Rentals: Primary-Residence-Only Rule (2026)
Key Facts
- Type I definition
- Owner-occupied, up to 5 guest bedrooms
- Type II definition
- Non-owner-occupied, up to 5 guest bedrooms
- Type III definition
- 6+ guest bedrooms, owner-occupied or not
- Transient guest
- Stay of 28 consecutive days or less
- Permit for types I & II
- Administrative permit, 2-year term, Director-issued
- Permit for type III
- Conditional use permit under TMC 18.215
- Type II spacing rule
- 500 feet from another type II/III since 3-2-21
Summary
Topeka's zoning code splits short-term rentals into three types based on who lives there. Type I is an owner-occupied dwelling with up to five guest bedrooms; type II is the identical five-bedroom rental in a home the operator does not live in; type III covers any six-or-more-bedroom rental regardless of occupancy. TMC § 18.55.190 draws that line, and it decides which Shawnee County permit track a host must follow.
“Short-term residential rental, type I” means any owner-occupied dwelling which: (1) contains rooms furnished for the purposes of providing lodging to transient guests; (2) is kept, used, maintained, advertised or held out to the public as a place where sleeping accommodations are available for pay or compensation by transient guests; and (3) has no more than five bedrooms furnished for the accommodation of such guests. “Short-term residential rental, type II” means any non-owner-occupied dwelling which (1) contains rooms furnished for the purposes of providing lodging to transient guests; (2) is kept, used, maintained, advertised or held out to the public as a place where sleeping accommodations are available for pay or compensation by transient guests; and (3) has no more than five bedrooms furnished for the accommodation of such guests. “Transient guest” means a person who occupies a short-term residential rental for not more than 28 consecutive days.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 20671, passed July 14, 2026).
Full Breakdown
55 TMC defines three short-term rental categories, and occupancy status is the dividing line the rest of the development code uses to decide which permit a host needs. A type I rental is an owner-occupied dwelling with lodging for transient guests in up to five furnished bedrooms; a type II rental is the same five-bedroom-or-fewer operation, but in a dwelling the operator does not live in; a type III rental has six or more guest bedrooms and can be owner-occupied or not. A 'transient guest' under the same section is anyone staying no more than 28 consecutive days, the line that separates a short-term rental from an ordinary lease.
215 TMC regardless of who lives in the house. Non-owner-occupied type II rentals in the R, M-1 and M-1A residential districts carry an additional 500-foot separation requirement from other type II or type III rentals established after March 1, 2021, a spacing check that does not apply to owner-occupied type I rentals. The City Council added this three-tier, occupancy-based structure by Ordinance 20283, adopted March 2, 2021, which rewrote the short-term rental definitions and use standards across Title 18.
Violations & Fines
Operating a short-term rental without the permit its occupancy status requires is a zoning violation the Planning Department enforces directly: the Director can deny, suspend or revoke an administrative permit for failing the type I or type II standards, and an unpermitted six-bedroom-plus (type III) operation lacks the conditional use permit Chapter 18.215 TMC requires, exposing the property to the code's general zoning enforcement and Board of Zoning Appeals review.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes a Topeka short-term rental 'Type I' instead of 'Type II'?
How long can a guest stay before Topeka treats the unit as a regular rental?
Does a Topeka owner-occupied (type I) rental need a different permit than a non-owner-occupied one?
What triggers the conditional use permit instead of the administrative one?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Topeka
Compare Topeka to another location·View the Kansas short-term rentals overview
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