Vacation Rental Permits

Starting in October 2018, you may use your dwelling (single-family home, condominium, townhouse) as a short-term rental less than 30 days at a time, with an Archuleta County Vacation Rental permit (Administrative Conditional Use Permit).  In July 2018, the Archuleta County Board of County Commissioners adopted Section 5.5.6 Vacation Rentals in the Archuleta County Land Use Regulations (click on side bar) for short-term rental of any legal dwelling in the county. A Vacation Rental Permit must be approved before you begin short-term rentals.  Permits for pre-existing short-term rentals closed December 31, 2018.

Call today to schedule a required Pre-Application Conference BEFORE completing a Vacation Rental Permit application, 970.264.1390 (8-4 Mountain Time, M-F).

Applications include:

  1. Local Owner/Representative, available to respond within one hour, 24/7.  (List of approved VR permits and registered Local Owner/Representatives)
  2. Site Sketch
  3. OWTS permit if on septic system (San Juan Basin Public Health)
  4. Proof of registration for sales & lodging tax with Colorado Dept. of Revenue. County lodging tax is 1.9% outside Town limits (total 8.8% tax rate).
  5. Notification of Owners Association (POA/HOA)
  6. Calendar year renewal.

Performance standards include:

  1. A legal dwelling may be used as a short-term rental with a Vacation Rental Permit.  Short-term rental of other structures such as a guest house, yurt, RV or tent require a Commercial Lodging permit.
  2. Occupancy:  No more than 2 overnight guests per bedroom, plus up to 2 other guests. At least one on-site parking spot is required for each bedroom--no parking is allowed on County roads except as permitted by the County Engineer.
    The International Code Council (ICC) defines a bedroom as "a room primarily intended for sleeping purposes." If it has a closet AND a door, we generally consider it "a room primarily intended for sleeping purposes" and require the necessary arc-fault protection, smoke detectors, and proper egress windows.  Lofts will be evaluated for building safety on a case-by-case basis.
  3. Ads for Vacation Rentals must include their Land Use Permit number (i.e. VR19-999).
  4. Neighbors will be notified after approval.
  5. Notice shall be provided to renters of relevant County & POA regulations and requirements.
  6. Refuse shall be properly managed.

The annual (calendar year) application fee is $400.

You can also search for any Land Use Permit at our online Citizen Access site:  https://aca.accela.com/ARCHCO/Default.aspx


 * PLPOA Short-term Rental Notifications Page

Special events like weddings, meetings, or corporate retreats; and renting a guest house, RV, yurt or tent sites, require different Land Use Permits, and must be separately permitted for a Vacation Rental.

For more information, contact Flora Goheen, Planning Tech, at Archuleta County Development Services--Planning Department, 970.264.1390, or email fGoheen@archuletacounty.org.

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