This is the question we are asked most by prospective owners, and the honest answer is that it depends on the specific property, not on the town.
We are property managers, not attorneys, and rules change. Treat this as a map of what to check rather than a substitute for checking it.
Check in this order
1. The recorded deed restrictions
Start here, not with the city. Deed restrictions run with the land and can prohibit short-term renting outright, regardless of what the municipality permits. They are recorded and available before purchase.
More owners are caught out by this than by anything else on this page. A property can be perfectly legal to let under city rules and still be prohibited by its own deed.
2. The HOA or POA
Communities on the North Shore each have their own governing documents. Some permit short-term renting freely; others impose minimum stay lengths, registration requirements, guest caps, or prohibit it entirely. Rules also change by member vote: what was permitted at purchase may be restricted later.
Ask for the current governing documents and any recent amendments. Ask specifically whether short-term renting has been discussed at recent meetings.
3. The municipality
Whether the property sits inside Jonestown city limits, inside Jonestown’s extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ), inside another municipality, or in unincorporated Travis County determines which rules apply, and properties with a Jonestown mailing address are not all inside city limits. Confirm the actual jurisdiction, then confirm that jurisdiction’s current requirements directly with them.
For Jonestown specifically, the city’s Short-Term Rentals page says:
- Short-term rentals inside the city are limited to the Short Term Rental Overlay District, so check that the property is inside it.
- Operators submit an application and required paperwork, pay an application fee, and renew the license every year (licenses run through December 31).
- Properties in the city’s ETJ do not pay the application fee but still owe hotel occupancy tax every quarter, and must file the form even when nothing is due.
The city’s code also sets operating rules for licensed rentals (such as parking and limits on gatherings). Read the current code, or call the city, before you buy.
4. State-level obligations
Texas charges a 6% state hotel occupancy tax on stays of fewer than 30 days, including short-term rentals, and cities can levy their own hotel occupancy tax on top. In Jonestown, the city’s tax is reported and paid quarterly. Some booking platforms collect and remit some of these taxes for you; confirm exactly which ones before you assume anything is covered. This is a compliance obligation from the first booking, not something to sort out later.
What we check for owners
When we evaluate a property for management, restrictions are part of the analysis rather than an afterthought. There is no point projecting revenue on a property that cannot legally be let.
If we find a restriction that makes short-term renting unviable, we tell you before you buy. We would rather lose the management contract than take on a property that generates a compliance problem in month three.
For buyers specifically
Build the check into your due diligence rather than after closing:
- Request deed restrictions and HOA documents during the option period
- Confirm the jurisdiction, then its rules, in writing
- Ask the HOA directly, in writing, whether short-term renting is permitted
- Confirm your insurer will cover short-term renting (many standard policies do not)
The short version
Rules vary by property, by community, and over time. Verify current requirements with the City of Jonestown, Travis County, and the property’s HOA before you buy or list, and get it in writing.
If you are weighing a purchase, talk to us. We do this check on every property we take on.
Thinking about buying to rent?
We will check the restrictions on a specific property before you commit, as part of the analysis, not as an extra.
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