LicensedRental

Virginia county rules

Louisa County, VA vacation rental rules and taxes

Louisa County, home to most of Lake Anna, is one of Virginia’s top-earning rental markets. Since January 2024, short-term rentals are allowed by right in agricultural zones and by right with conditions in the lake’s residential and resort zones; elsewhere they need a conditional use permit. Stays pay 5.3% sales tax plus a 7% county lodging tax, and the towns of Louisa and Mineral add their own.

Checked against official sources November 7, 2026
Market
About 450 Airbnb listings
Mineral 254, Bumpass 144, Louisa 49. Mineral ranks seventh in Virginia, averaging $75,400 a year (AirROI).Source
Sales tax
5.3%
Lodging tax
7% county
Up from 2% on January 1, 2024. Louisa town adds 1% and Mineral 5%.Source
Local rules
County zoning (2024)
Contact filing, contract notices, and code compliance in the lake’s growth-area residential zones.

What to do

  1. Register for the lodging tax

    Give the Commissioner of the Revenue your rental and contact information. For direct bookings, file and pay the 7% transient occupancy tax with the county. Airbnb collects it on its bookings.Source

  2. Then your town or area

    Zoning rules are set by the county outside town limits and by each town inside them, and towns can add their own lodging tax. Pick your area.

Towns

Full guide

Louisa

Louisa levies its own lodging tax; stays owe 5.3% sales tax + 1% town lodging tax. We could not search the town’s zoning code, so ask the town whether a short-term rental needs a permit.

Full guide

Mineral

Mineral levies its own lodging tax; stays owe 5.3% sales tax + 5% town lodging tax. We could not search the town’s zoning code, so ask the town whether a short-term rental needs a permit.

Full guide

Unincorporated Louisa County

Louisa County allows short-term rentals by right in its agricultural zones, and by right with conditions in the growth-area residential (R-1, R-2) and resort (RD) zones where most Lake Anna waterfront homes are: you file your contact details, put county rules in every rental contract, and meet health and building codes. Other zones need a conditional use permit. Stays pay 5.3% sales tax plus a 7% lodging tax.

Sources

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 Spot something out of date?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.