Medora, ND Airbnb & Short-Term Rental Regulations 2026

Regulation Overview

Tiny but iconic gateway town to Theodore Roosevelt National Park's south unit in the North Dakota Badlands, driving a highly seasonal but high-demand summer vacation-rental market around the Medora Musical and park tourism.

No STR-specific ordinance, cap, or owner-occupancy rule was found for Medora; the town appears to rely on general zoning and North Dakota's standard state tax registration, though local rules could not be fully confirmed.

North Dakota State Law

State preemption: None — North Dakota has no state-level preemption of local short-term rental regulation and no statewide STR license requirement; cities and counties set their own rules where they choose to regulate at all.

Statewide rules: Operators must register with the ND Office of State Tax Commissioner to collect and remit state sales tax on stays under 30 days. Any local city/county lodging tax is capped at 2% under NDCC Chapter 40-57.3, where a locality chooses to adopt one.

Taxes: State sales tax + optional local lodging tax up to 2% (NDCC ch. 40-57.3), where adopted.

2025–2026 legislation: No statewide STR legislation identified as pending or passed. Individual cities are moving independently — e.g., West Fargo adopted its own new STR ordinance (Ordinance 1254), effective July 1, 2026 — VERIFY city-specific status for Fargo and Medora, which appear not to have adopted dedicated STR ordinances yet.

Medora Rules

Governing jurisdiction: City of Medora and/or Billings County zoning (specific split not confirmed); North Dakota has no state-level STR licensing or preemption..

• Medora sits at the south-unit gateway to Theodore Roosevelt National Park in the North Dakota Badlands and hosts the long-running Medora Musical, driving a strongly seasonal (summer-peaked) short-term rental market.
• North Dakota has no statewide short-term rental license, permit, or preemption law — regulation, where it exists, is set entirely by individual cities and counties.
• All North Dakota STR operators, including in Medora, must register with the state Office of State Tax Commissioner to collect and remit state sales tax on stays under 30 days.
• State law caps any local city or county lodging tax at 2% (NDCC Chapter 40-57.3), if the local government chooses to impose one at all.
• This research could not confirm whether Medora or Billings County has adopted its own short-term rental-specific ordinance, licensing requirement, or lodging tax — unlike Fargo-area cities (e.g., West Fargo), no Medora-specific STR news coverage or ordinance text was found.
• Given Medora's tiny year-round population and heavy reliance on seasonal tourism, investors should verify current zoning and any lodging-tax requirements directly with Medora City Hall and Billings County before purchase, since this is genuinely a small, under-documented market rather than one with a confirmed light-touch policy.

Not confirmed

We could not verify the following against a primary source. Confirm each with the jurisdiction before you rely on it:

• Whether Medora or Billings County has any STR-specific ordinance, permit, fee, or cap at all
• Whether a local lodging tax has been adopted
• Occupancy limits and minimum stay length
• Zoning designations applicable to vacation rental properties in and around Medora

Buyer Due Diligence Checklist

Before you write an offer on a short-term rental here:

• Get a written determination from the governing jurisdiction for the specific parcel. Verbal guidance from anyone else is not diligence.
• Establish which jurisdiction governs — city, town, village and unincorporated county can differ sharply within a few miles.
• Ask whether an existing permit transfers on sale. In many markets it does not, and a listing marketed as a running short-term rental may convey nothing of the sort.
• Read the HOA or condo covenants during your inspection period. Private covenants bind even where the jurisdiction permits the use.
• Model revenue against the legal occupancy cap, not the bedroom count.

Frequently Asked Questions