Wausau, WI Short-Term Rentals: Primary-Residence-Only Rule (2026)
Key Facts
- Enforcing agency
- Wausau Inspections and Zoning Division
- Occupancy rule
- operator must live on premises while active
- Permit type
- conditional use, Plan Commission/Council approval
- Parking
- one space per bedroom plus residence needs
- State overlay
- Wis. Stat. § 254.61 / DHS 197 license
Summary
Wausau allows a bed and breakfast only when it is the operator's own home. City Code Section 23.03.10(13)(b) requires the operator/owner to treat the dwelling as a principal residence and live on the premises whenever the bed and breakfast is active, a conditional use in the RH-35, SR-2 and other residential districts.
(13)Bed and breakfast: Bed and Breakfasts are places of lodging that provide rooms for rent in the owner's personal residence, are occupied by the owner at the time of rental, and where the only meal served to guests is breakfast. ... (a)Facility shall be surrounded by a bufferyard with a minimum opacity of 0.40 along all property borders abutting residentially zoned property.(b)The dwelling unit in which the Bed and Breakfast takes place shall be the principal residence of the operator/owner and said operator/owner shall live on the premises when the Bed and Breakfast operation is active.(c)The facility shall comply with the requirements of Wis. Stats. § § 254.61 Chapter DHS 197, Wis. Admin. Code.(d)Minimum required parking: One space per each bedroom in addition to requirements for principal residents.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 12 Update 2).
Full Breakdown
10(13) as lodging that rents rooms in the owner's personal residence, occupied by the owner at the time of rental, where only breakfast is served to guests. " That single sentence separates a lawful Wausau bed and breakfast from an absentee-owner rental: if the owner moves out, or never lived there, the conditional use no longer applies. Wausau's Inspections and Zoning Division reviews bed and breakfasts as a conditional use, so each one needs Plan Commission and Common Council approval under Title 23 before it opens, and the underlying district matters: RH-35 (Rural Holding), SR-2 through SR-7, DR-8 and several other residential districts list bed and breakfast only as a conditional use, never a use permitted by right.
Subsection (c) layers state health law on top of the local rule, requiring compliance with Wis. Stat. 61 and Wisconsin Administrative Code Chapter DHS 197, the tourist rooming house licensing program the Wisconsin Department of Health Services runs. Parking is fixed at one space per bedroom, in addition to what the principal residence already needs. The owner-occupancy line only binds property inside Wausau's city limits; it does not reach a bed and breakfast in the Village of Rothschild or in unincorporated Marathon County, which run their own separate land-use codes.
Violations & Fines
Operating a bed and breakfast where the owner does not live on site, or continuing after the owner moves out, puts the conditional use permit out of compliance with Wausau Municipal Code Section 23.03.10(13)(b); the Inspections and Zoning Division can pursue permit revocation and municipal citation under Title 23's enforcement provisions. Skipping the required Wis. Stat. Section 254.61 / DHS 197 tourist rooming house license adds a separate state licensing violation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I run a bed and breakfast in Wausau if I don't live there?
What permit do I need to open a bed and breakfast in Wausau?
How much parking does a Wausau bed and breakfast need?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Wausau
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