Virginia Beach
Can you run an Airbnb or do rental arbitrage here? What the city requires: permits, taxes, safety rules and enforcement.
Red light: banned in residential zones, with Sandbridge and overlay exceptions
Virginia Beach does not allow short-term rentals in its residential districts, except in the Sandbridge Special Service District and in STR overlay districts with a conditional use permit.[1] Grandfathered properties, which registered and paid transient occupancy taxes before July 1, 2018, can also operate.[2, 3] Wherever rentals are allowed, you need a $500 yearly zoning permit.[2]
Our verdict, based on the sources at the end of this guide.
Virginia Beach limits short-term rentals by location. The zoning table for residential districts marks them as not allowed, with exceptions for the Sandbridge Special Service District and STR overlay districts.[1] Grandfathered properties that registered and paid transient occupancy taxes before July 1, 2018 can also operate.[2, 3] Where rentals are allowed, you need a $500 yearly zoning permit, $1 million in liability insurance and one parking space per bedroom.[2, 3] City lodging tax adds 8% plus $2 a night.[5]
Key requirements
Where rentals can operate
The zoning use table for residential districts marks a short-term rental with an X, and shows it as permitted (P) in the Sandbridge Special Service District and conditional (C) in an STR overlay district.[1] The city's page lists the same places, plus grandfathered properties.[2] Home sharing, where the owner lives in the home and rents rooms, is a separate category with no zoning permit.[2]
Grandfathered properties
A rental that registered and paid transient occupancy taxes to the Commissioner of the Revenue before July 1, 2018 is grandfathered, needs no conditional use permit, and must still meet the conditions in section 241.2.[3] Rentals that got a conditional use permit between Nov 1, 2019 and Sept 7, 2021 in a district where rentals weren't allowed are also grandfathered.[3] Grandfathered status runs with the land, but growing the footprint by more than 25% or 1,000 square feet, whichever is less, revokes it.[3]
Overlay districts and conditional use permits
In an overlay district a rental is a conditional use, and the city says new registrants in the Oceanfront Resort overlay need a conditional use permit before the zoning permit.[1, 2] The application form lists a $360 fee, while the zoning ordinance sets $1,090 for most applications and $360 for nonprofits and home occupations.[7, 8] The owner signs the disclosure statement, though a lessee can file the application if the owner acknowledges it.[7, 8]
Zoning permit
Every rental needs a zoning permit, which costs $500 and is valid for one year from issuance.[2] Apply through the city's Accela Citizen Access portal or on paper, with a sworn statement, inspection reports, a parking plan, proof of $1 million in liability insurance and proof of registration with the Commissioner of the Revenue.[2] Staff review the application for compliance before you pay the fee.[2]
Who signs
The sworn statement is signed by the property owner or a representative of the owner.[4] A tenant-operator can have the owner hold the permit and manage the rental under a written agreement. Managing a rental for an owner for pay may need a state real estate license, because Virginia's license law defines a real estate broker to include someone who rents or offers for rent real estate for others.[9]
Operational and safety standards
Parking
Provide at least one off-street parking space per bedroom, and the city page sizes each space at 9 feet by 18 feet.[2, 3] Vehicles can stack, but no on-street parking counts.[3] If you can't park on site, the owner must submit a parking plan for the zoning administrator to approve.[3]
Occupancy and events
Overnight guests, counted after 11 at night and before 7 in the morning, are capped at three per bedroom under the base code and two per bedroom in an overlay district.[3, 10] In an overlay district, minors under 16 don't count toward that cap, and the total can never pass three per bedroom.[10] Events of more than 50 people need a special events permit and are limited to three a year, while overlay districts bar special event permits and cap events at the overnight limit.[3, 10]
Safety and inspections
Inspectors check for a fire extinguisher in plain sight, and for smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors that were inspected within the last 12 months.[3] The property is inspected when you first apply and every five years after that, with an attestation in the years between.[3] A structural safety report on exterior stairs, decks, porches and balconies more than 30 inches above ground is due every three years.[3]
Contact and signs
Name a responsible person who can be reached by phone and can address problems within 30 minutes, and in an overlay district that person must also be at the rental within one hour.[3, 10] Post one four-square-foot sign on the building with the Short-term Rental Hotline number and the owner or property manager's contact information.[3] Post the city's summary of the noise, trash, beach fire and fireworks rules inside the unit, along with any approved parking plan.[3]
Rental limits and guest rules
A rental can have no more than two rental contracts in any seven consecutive days, or one in an overlay district.[3, 10] Outdoor amplified sound is barred from 10 at night to 10 in the morning, and accessory structures can't be rented out.[3] The city's guest rules also prohibit fireworks and open fires and require trash to go in automated receptacles where provided.[11]
Tax obligations
City lodging tax
The city levies a tax of 8% of the total amount paid for lodging plus a flat $2.00 for each night.[5] Stays in the Sandbridge Special Service District pay another 1.5%, except at hotels, motels and travel campgrounds.[5]
Regional tax
The city's tax does not include the regional transient occupancy tax that state law imposes, and the city says that tax is collected the same way as the local tax.[5] State law sets the regional rate at 1% in a transportation district in Hampton Roads.[12]
Sales tax
Virginia Tax lists a 6% sales tax rate for the Hampton Roads localities, including Virginia Beach, and says the tax applies to the sale, lease and rental of accommodations.[6]
Who collects
If you book guests directly, you collect the city tax, list it as its own line on the bill and remit it.[5] If a booking platform facilitates the sale, the platform collects and remits the tax instead.[5]
Filing and registration
Reports and payments are due on or before the 20th of each month for the tax collected the month before.[5] A late report adds a penalty of 10% of the tax or $10, whichever is greater, and the penalty can't exceed the tax.[5] Each rental must also stay registered with the Commissioner of the Revenue's office, to the extent state law permits.[3]
Enforcement
Zoning penalties
A zoning violation is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $1,000.[13] If the violation isn't fixed after conviction, further fines of up to $1,000, then $1,500, then $2,000 for each later ten-day period can follow.[13]
Revocation
City Council can revoke a conditional use permit or grandfathered status after notice and a hearing, with written notice at least 15 days before the hearing.[3] Grounds include a violation of the section, a violation of any local, state or federal law, a broken permit condition, or grandfather conditions that are no longer met.[3]
Permit terms and renewal
A conditional use permit expires five years after adoption, and the planning department handles renewal.[3] Planning must tell City Council in writing before renewing a permit for a rental that drew neighbor complaints or code violations.[3] The zoning permit renews every year.[2]
Platform reports
Booking platforms must report each rental's property address and gross receipts to the Commissioner of the Revenue, and a copy of the addresses goes to the planning department's zoning division.[5] The code says that information is submitted monthly, and a platform that doesn't file on time faces a $500 fine.[5]
Complaints and task force
Neighbors can reach the city's STR team at (757) 385-8862 or STR@vbgov.com, or call 311 for immediate noise or parking issues.[2] The city set up a task force to study short-term rental enforcement and registration, including grandfathered properties.[14] Its page lists meetings from June to October 2024 and a January 21, 2025 final report briefing for City Council.[14]
Bottom line for arbitrage
Only chase deals in Sandbridge, an overlay district or on a grandfathered property. Prove the status before you sign.
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Sources
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