Stone County and lake town short-term rental rules

Last checked October 19, 2026. This is general info, not legal or tax advice, and rules change. Check with Stone County Health Department before you rely on it.

What permits does a Stone County rental need?

Start with the health department permit. It’s $150 to apply and $150 a year to renew, and it expires each June 30 (Stone County Health Department).

Outside city limits, you also need a county Conditional Use Permit in the A-1, A-R, RR-1 or R-2 zones (Zoning Regulations Art. 4 §25). In R-4, short-term rentals are a permitted use (Art. 13). R-1 was taken off the list (20th amendments, effective July 19, 2022).

In the lake towns, Kimberling City allows no rentals under 30 days in R-1, R-1B, R-2 or R-3 (§400.516 A). Reeds Spring bans STRs in R-1 and has you apply to the City Clerk everywhere else (§401.421). Branson West’s Board of Aldermen took up an STR ordinance in June 2026, but we couldn’t find the adopted text.

Stone County Health Department vacation rental permit

You can’t rent a unit for 28 consecutive days or less without one, and each unit needs its own (Vacation Rental Ordinance §4.2.7–4.2.8). Apply before your first guest. It’s $150 to apply and $150 a year after that, and every permit expires June 30 (health department page).

On the application you’ll need (health department page, 2025 application):

• the owner’s name, address and phone, and the same for the managing agent or local contact;
• a diagram or photo showing the on-site parking spaces and the maximum number of overnight vehicles;
• evidence of a county transient occupancy tax remittance form;
• a signed acknowledgment that you’ve read the rules;
• a septic (onsite wastewater) inspection report from a licensed inspector. If the system falls short, the first repair permit fee is waived;
• a Stone County Merchants License.

The 2025 application also says a county Planning & Zoning Conditional Use Permit is needed “if required” and is “not required in incorporated areas (Villages, towns and cities)” (2025 application).

How many guests, and what you post

The health department inspects before it approves a permit (Ordinance §4.6). Once you have it, the most you can sleep is 2 people per bedroom plus 4 per residence. Vehicles can’t outnumber the designated on-site spaces, and buses that seat more than half the permitted occupancy aren’t allowed.

Inside the rental, post the permit and its conditions, plus a notice for guests with a contact, the maximum occupants and vehicles, and the trash rules. Trash can sit outside only from 6 p.m. the day before pickup until 6 p.m. on pickup day.

Stone County zoning outside city limits

Short-term rentals (under 30 days) may be a Conditional Use in the A-1, A-R, RR-1 and R-2 districts (Art. 4 §25). The county removed the R-1 district from that list effective July 19, 2022 (Schedule of Zoning Amendments). Several cases on the Oct. 6, 2026 agenda ask to rezone R-1 lots to RR-1 “to allow for a Short-Term Rental Application” (P&Z agenda). The R-4 district lists “hotels, and short-term rentals for any number of guests” as a permitted use (Art. 13).

Section 25 attaches these conditions (Art. 4 §25):

• the rental can’t violate subdivision covenants;
• it can’t endanger health or safety, hurt property values, or clash with the area’s traffic and noise;
• a representative or agent is available at all times;
• you keep a Missouri sales tax license, a Stone County merchant’s license and the health department permit in effect;
• at least 2 parking spaces for up to 3 bedrooms, plus 1 for every 2 more bedrooms. All vehicles park on the property, never on the roadside, with at most 3 outside vehicles plus any in a garage.

A Conditional Use Permit costs $100 plus the cost of notices, and a rezoning is $200 plus notices (P&Z permit fees). The merchants license is $25 for 12 months. To get it you need a valid state sales tax number and a Planning & Zoning sign-off (merchants license application).

The rules may change soon. On the Oct. 6, 2026 agenda, the Planning & Zoning Board is set to vote on recommended amendments to the county’s short-term rental regulations (P&Z agenda). We haven’t seen the amendment text. Call Stone County Planning & Zoning at 417-357-8402 (P&Z page; all regulations are on the regulations index).

Kimberling City short-term rentals

Kimberling City’s zoning code bans renting R-1 and R-1B property as a “nightly, weekly, vacation, or lake rental.” It also bans any rental shorter than 30 days, or one that starts within 30 days of the previous rental’s first day. R-2 and R-3 have the same 30-day limit. R-1 properties consistently rented that way before Jan. 1, 2017 can keep going, but a buyer has to follow the rule (§400.516 A). The city’s land use matrix doesn’t list short-term rentals as a use (Land Use Matrix).

We couldn’t find a Kimberling City STR permit or fee in its code. Call Community Development or City Hall at 417-739-4903 (Community Development). Some “Kimberling City” addresses are outside city limits. The county’s Oct. 6, 2026 agenda has a short-term rental Conditional Use Permit for a Kimberling City address zoned R-3 (P&Z agenda).

Branson West short-term rentals

Branson West’s Planning & Zoning Commission scheduled a public hearing for May 18, 2026 on an ordinance “creating the process to permit and regulate” rentals under 30 consecutive days (P&Z agenda, May 18, 2026). The June 9, 2026 Board of Aldermen agenda lists Bill No. 2026-012, Ordinance No. 12-2026, for first and second reading (BOA agenda, June 9, 2026).

Unconfirmed: whether it passed, what it requires, and the fee, if any. We couldn’t find minutes or the ordinance text on the city’s site. Call the Building Department at (417) 272-3313 (Building Department).

Reeds Spring short-term rentals

Reeds Spring defines a short-term rental as a residential unit rented for 28 days or less (§401.090). Ord. 2024-03 and 2025-18 set these rules (§401.421):

• no short-term rentals in the R-1 district;
• at most 2 people per bedroom;
• an occupancy permit, a sales tax number and an annual business license;
• one parking space per bedroom;
• no more than two STRs on one property;
• no parties, weddings or other events;
• posted inside: the responsible party’s contact, copies of the certificate of occupancy and business license, the trash schedule and the city noise ordinance.

You apply to the City Clerk. The city decides within 30 days and notifies owners within 185 feet, and if owners of more than 40% of that area protest, the application is denied (§401.421). The code doesn’t give a fee. Ask City Hall: 21016 Main St., Ste. B, 417-272-3309 (City of Reeds Spring).

Local help

On most Stone County applications, the septic inspection comes first. The directory has septic and plumbing companies, plus hot tub and pool service, exterior cleaning and turnover cleaners around the lake. Lake-side taxes, including Stone County’s 3% lodging tax, are on the taxes page.

Other pages in this guide

• Overview: which rules apply to your rental
• Branson STR license, permit and fire inspection
• Branson zoning: where short-term rentals are allowed
• Taxes: Branson tourism tax, Missouri sales tax and Airbnb
• Taney County, Hollister and Forsyth
• Stone County, Kimberling City, Branson West and Reeds Spring

Sources

These are government pages and code sections unless the line says otherwise. We read each one on October 19, 2026.

1. Stone County Health Department, Lodging Establishment Inspections / Vacation Home Rental. https://stonecountyhealthdepartment.com/lodging-establishment-inspections/. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
2. Stone County Health Code, Vacation Rental Ordinance (2012), PDF. https://stonecountyhealthdepartment.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/vacation-rental-ordinance_9_7_2012.pdf. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
3. Stone County Health Department, Vacation Home Rental Permit Application (2025), PDF. https://stonecountyhealthdepartment.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Vacation-Home-Rental-Permit-Application.pdf. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
4. Stone County Zoning Regulations Article 4, Special Provisions (through Dec. 13, 2022), §25 Short-Term Rentals, PDF. https://stonecountymo.gov/Doc/PZ/Regulations/ARTICLE%204,%20Special%20Provisions%20121322.pdf. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
5. Stone County Schedule of Zoning Amendments 1st–22nd (current to Oct. 26, 2023), PDF. https://stonecountymo.gov/Doc/PZ/Regulations/Schedule%20of%20Zoning%20Amendments%20-%201st%20-%2022nd%20102623.pdf. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
6. Stone County Zoning Regulations Article 13, R-4 Multi-Family Residence District, PDF. https://stonecountymo.gov/Doc/PZ/Regulations/P&Z%20Regulations%20111314.pdf/Zoning%20Regulations%20current%20111314/ARTICLE%2013,%20R-4,%20Multi-Family%20Residence%20District,111314.pdf. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
7. Stone County Planning & Zoning Permit Fees, PDF. https://stonecountymo.gov/Doc/PZ/Forms/PLANNING%20AND%20ZONING%20PERMIT%20FEES1.pdf. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
8. Stone County Merchants License Application (new business), PDF. https://stonecountymo.gov/Doc/Collector/License%20Applications/MERCHANTS%20LICENSE%20APPLICATION-New%20Business.pdf. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
9. Stone County Planning & Zoning agenda, Oct. 6, 2026, PDF. https://stonecountymo.gov/Doc/PZ/Agenda/PZ.pdf. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
10. Stone County Planning & Zoning. https://stonecountymo.gov/P%20and%20Z.htm. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
11. Stone County Planning & Zoning Regulations index. https://stonecountymo.gov/Regs.htm. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
12. Kimberling City Code §400.516, Specific use regulations (A. short-term rentals). https://ecode360.com/38109538. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
13. Kimberling City Code Ch. 400, Land Use Matrix, PDF. https://ecode360.com/attachment/329388/KI3332-400a%20Land%20Use%20Matrix.pdf. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
14. Kimberling City, Community Development. https://www.ckcmo.com/page/community-development. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
15. City of Branson West, Planning & Zoning agenda, May 18, 2026, PDF. https://cityofbransonwest.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/P-Z-Agenda-May-18-2026.pdf. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
16. City of Branson West, Board of Aldermen agenda, June 9, 2026 (scanned), PDF. https://cityofbransonwest.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Agenda-June-9-2026.pdf. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
17. City of Branson West, Building Department. https://cityofbransonwest.com/building-department/. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
18. Reeds Spring Code §401.421, Short-term rentals. https://ecode360.com/47793767. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
19. Reeds Spring Code §401.090, Definition of short-term rental. https://ecode360.com/47792915. Checked Oct 19, 2026.
20. City of Reeds Spring, Municipal Code (city contact). https://www.reedsspringmo.gov/page/municipal-code. Checked Oct 19, 2026.

Last checked October 19, 2026. Spot something out of date? Give us a holler and we’ll fix it.