El Paso County, Colorado
Manitou Springs, CO vacation rental requirements
Manitou Springs caps short-term rentals at 2% of the city’s homes, requires the owner to live on the property at least 185 days a year, and keeps rentals 500 feet apart. You must post an evacuation route, extinguisher and CO alarm locations, and house limits by the front door.
Checked against official sources November 8, 2026Download checklist (PDF)Free. A printable version of this guide to tick off, with the official sources.
These rules come from a third-party copy of the city code; we couldn’t find the city’s own STR page. Confirm fees and the cap count with the city.
Your licensing checklist
In order: the state, the county, then the town.
State of Colorado
Get a state sales tax license
If you rent rooms or a home for stays under 30 days, Colorado requires a sales tax license from the Department of Revenue. Platforms like Airbnb collect the state and state-administered taxes on their bookings; you file for anything booked directly.Source
Check for home-rule city taxes
Many cities and mountain towns collect their own sales and lodging taxes. Platforms aren’t required by the state to collect these, so you may need a separate city tax license and returns.Source
Get your county or city rental license
Most Colorado mountain counties and towns, and Denver, require a short-term rental license or permit, often with an inspection, an occupancy limit, posted information, and a local responder. Pick your area for the rules.
El Paso County, Colorado
Then your town or area
Cities and towns make their own rental rules inside their limits; the county’s rules apply only outside them. Pick your area.
City of Manitou Springs
Check the cap and spacing
Short-term rentals are allowed in the residential zones (GR, LDR, HDR, HLDR) but are capped at 2% of the city’s homes and must be 500 feet from another rental. Ask the city whether permits are available. ADUs can’t be rentals.Source
Apply for a permit
Sign an affidavit that the property is your primary residence at least 185 days a year. The permit is yours, not the property’s: it ends when you sell. Renew every year and rent at least 21 days a year to keep it.Source
Post the notice and evacuation route
Near the front door and in the rental contract, post the maximum guests and vehicles, trash rules, your contact, where the extinguishers and CO alarms are, noise rules, and an evacuation route with emergency instructions.Source
Taxes on each stay
Stays under 30 days owe 2.9% state plus El Paso County, PPRTA, and Manitou Springs city taxes. Airbnb and other platforms collect the state and state-administered taxes on their bookings; for direct bookings, file with the Colorado Department of Revenue. Manitou Springs is a home-rule city; ask the city whether it charges a lodging tax and whether platforms collect city taxes.Source
Inspection checklist
What the inspector looks for, from City of Manitou Springs’s published checklist.
House rules for guests
Sources
- Sales & Use Tax Topics: Rooms & Accommodations · Colorado Department of Revenue
- Sales Tax Guide and Colorado Sales/Use Tax Rates (DR 1002) · Colorado Department of Revenue
- Land Use and Development Code Sec. 18.04.5.4, Short-Term Rentals (copy) · Zoneomics (copy of the Manitou Springs code)
- Colorado Airbnb market data (active listings) · AirROI
A plain-language summary to help you prepare, not legal advice. Rules and fees change; confirm with the office before you apply. Spot something out of date? Email hello@licensedrental.com.