West Des Moines, IA Short-Term Rentals: Taxes & Fees (2026)

Section 9-5-4(D) of the West Des Moines Zoning Ordinance, part of the Agricultural/Open Space and Residential Zoning District chapter, singles out short-term rentals for their own compliance path. Any dwelling or dwelling unit, as defined in Title 8, Chapter 2, Article A and in Title 9's own definitions chapter, that is offered for a fee for a period of thirty days or less is a short-term rental, and the code subjects it to three layers of requirements at once: the City's own Rental Housing provisions in Title 8, Chapter 2, Article A, Subsection 15; the applicable zoning-title standards; and Iowa Code chapter 423A, the state statute that taxes lodging, subject to the exemptions provided in that statute.

The section adds one local carve-out: the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals may impose its own requirements on the unit, but no inspection fee is charged through that state-referenced process. Because Title 8's Rental Housing chapter, section 8-2A-16, separately requires anyone who rents a dwelling on a short- or long-term basis to hold a valid rental inspection certificate, and ties fees for that certificate to a City Council fee resolution with a 30-day payment window before an added investigation fee applies, a West Des Moines short-term rental operator is on the hook for both the state's chapter 423A lodging tax and the City's separate rental-certificate fee track, not one or the other. Development Services administers the zoning side of that dual obligation, while the Building Division administers the certificate and fee side.