Deep Creek Lake, MD short-term rental market report (2026)
Garrett County, Maryland. Rules, revenue, home values, demand, climate, reach and risk, each figure with its source.
- RulesLight-touch (2/5)
- 4-BR typical value$574K
- FEMA riskVery Low
- Demand drivers within 50 mi5
- People within 300 mi75.3 million
- ClimateSki-plus-summer
Everything STR HUB holds on Deep Creek Lake, MD in one place, in the order an investor needs it: whether you can operate, what the numbers are, why and when people come, who can reach it, and what could go wrong.
Every figure comes from a named dataset listed under Sources and method, dated September 21, 2026. Where we do not hold a figure, that part of the report is left out rather than estimated. The Opportunity Score here is partial: it was calculated without revenue data, with the cash-flow component assumed to be below average, so it can understate the market.
Can you operate in Deep Creek Lake?
What the rating rests on: A zoning permit (around $50) accompanies applications inside the Deep Creek Lake Watershed District.
Rules change, and a city rating does not cover HOA or deed restrictions. Confirm current requirements with the jurisdiction before you buy or list.
Which way the rules are moving
Stable. The rules we hold report no recent or pending change.
Classified from the regulation text we publish; a direction is only kept when the sentence it rests on appears word for word in that text.
The numbers
We have not verified revenue figures for this market yet.
Home values in Garrett County
Zillow Home Value Index: county-wide typical values for Garrett County, not list prices. A specific property can sit well above or below them.
What it costs to own
Screening figures, not a bill or a quote. The tax rate is a county-wide median for owner-occupied homes (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2018-2022); second homes and rentals are often taxed more heavily, and a purchase usually resets the assessed value. Expected annual loss is from the FEMA National Risk Index.
Housing market momentum
County-level, for-sale housing market: it says nothing directly about STR bookings. A relative ranking among tracked markets, not a forecast. Sources: Realtor.com Economic Research, U.S. Census Bureau, Zillow Home Value Index.
Why people come
5 demand drivers sit within 50 miles of Deep Creek Lake. Ordered by published attendance. Attendance appears only where a source publishes it.
Outdoor activities
- Deep Creek Lake & Wisp Resort
- When
- Summer lake season plus a winter ski season at Wisp.
- STR angle
- The mountain-lake getaway for Washington, Baltimore and Pittsburgh, with genuine demand in both summer and winter. Large lakefront or ski-access houses with docks, hot tubs and game rooms define the market.
- Ohiopyle State Park (Youghiogheny River)
- When
- Spring through fall for rafting and the rail trail.
- STR angle
- Rafters, cyclists on the rail trail and Fallingwater visitors converge on a village with very little lodging. Cabins and houses in the Laurel Highlands also pick up Seven Springs ski traffic in winter.
- Seven Springs Mountain Resort
- When
- Winter ski season, roughly December through March, heavily weekend- and holiday-driven.
- STR angle
- The main ski resort for the Pittsburgh market. Slope-side condos and Laurel Highlands chalets rent to families and groups on winter weekends.
Landmarks
- Flight 93 National Memorial
- When
- Year-round; busiest months by 2025 NPS recreation visits were May, Sep, Jul.
- Attendance
- 286,079 (NPS recreation visits, full calendar year 2025 — Wikipedia's infobox shows 377,810 for 2023)
- STR angle
- A sombre, mostly pass-through stop off the Pennsylvania Turnpike; on its own it adds a night in Somerset rather than a multi-day stay. It supports rentals whose main business is Laurel Highlands skiing and summer lake traffic.
- Fallingwater (Frank Lloyd Wright)
- When
- Tours run roughly March to December; summer and fall foliage peak.
- STR angle
- Timed tours sell out and the house is far from any city, so architecture pilgrims routinely stay overnight in the Laurel Highlands, where lodging is scarce. Cabins and design-minded houses near Ohiopyle capture them along with rafting, cycling and ski traffic.
- Source
- Wikipedia: Fallingwater
When they come
Ski-plus-summer climate: at least three months bring six inches or more of snowfall, and May to September is comfortable. 5 of 12 months have an average high between 60°F and 88°F, and 4 months average six inches or more of snow. Warmest month: July (average high 78°F). Coldest: January (average low 22°F).
- Jan35°22°ColdSnow
- Feb41°23°ColdSnow
- Mar48°29°CoolSnow
- Apr56°38°Cool
- May64°47°Comfortable
- Jun72°56°Comfortable
- Jul78°63°Comfortable
- Aug76°61°Comfortable
- Sep70°55°Comfortable
- Oct60°45°Cool
- Nov48°32°Cool
- Dec41°27°ColdSnow
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average high (°F) | 35 | 41 | 48 | 56 | 64 | 72 | 78 | 76 | 70 | 60 | 48 | 41 |
| Average low (°F) | 22 | 23 | 29 | 38 | 47 | 56 | 63 | 61 | 55 | 45 | 32 | 27 |
| Precipitation (in) | 4.3 | 4.6 | 3.9 | 4.5 | 5.3 | 4.1 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 2.5 | 4.1 |
| Snowfall (in) | 12.5 | 8.5 | 6.5 | 2.8 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 2.8 | 9.1 |
| Sunshine (hours a day) | 4.5 | 5.9 | 7.5 | 8.9 | 9.8 | 11.1 | 11.8 | 10.7 | 9.8 | 7.4 | 7.0 | 4.8 |
This is climate and events, not booking data. Monthly normals are 2019-2023 averages from the Open-Meteo Historical Weather API (ERA5 reanalysis) at the market pin. We do not hold monthly occupancy or rate data for this market.
Who can reach it
Largest counties within 150 miles
| County | Population |
|---|---|
| Allegheny County, PA | 1,245,310 |
| Fairfax County, VA | 1,145,354 |
| Montgomery County, MD | 1,056,910 |
County populations (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2018-2022) summed for every county whose centre lies within each straight-line radius. Straight lines are shorter than roads, so read these as generous upper bounds, not drive-time counts.
What could go wrong
| Hazard | FEMA rating | Score (0-100) |
|---|---|---|
| Winter weather | Relatively Moderate | 64.3 |
| Hurricane | Relatively Low | 63.8 |
| Hail | Relatively Low | 48.3 |
| River flooding | Very Low | 34.7 |
| Earthquake | Very Low | 32.4 |
| Wildfire | Very Low | 31.9 |
| Tornado | Very Low | 21.2 |
This is a county-level index, not an insurance quote or a flood-zone determination. A coastal or wildfire-fringe rental can carry far more exposure than its county average suggests. FEMA does not model coastal flooding for this county, which is not the same as zero risk. Get property-level flood, wind and wildfire quotes before you buy.
Market context
Housing and jobs in Garrett County
U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2018-2022. Vacation-home share is housing units held for seasonal, recreational or occasional use. All three describe the whole county, not one town or neighbourhood.
What is within 15 km of the Deep Creek Lake pin
Counts of features mapped in OpenStreetMap within 15 km of the market pin. A fixed radius favours dense metros, and map coverage varies by area.
Similar markets
The 4 tracked markets whose numbers sit closest to Deep Creek Lake's. Each links to its own report.
Closest by normalised distance across the figures both markets hold (typical 4BR value, revenue, occupancy, regulation rating, vacation-home share, tourism job share, 4+ bedroom share, amenity score, population within 300 miles, comfortable months and FEMA risk score). At most 2 of the 4 come from Maryland, so the list is not just the neighbours. Similar numbers do not mean similar rules: check each market's regulation section.
See Deep Creek Lake on the map
Open Deep Creek Lake on the National STR Map to see it against its neighbours, switch overlays and run the deal calculator on your own assumptions.
Deep Creek Lake STR questions, answered from the data
Is Airbnb legal in Deep Creek Lake?
STR HUB rates Deep Creek Lake's short-term rental rules 2/5 (Light-touch) on a scale from 1 (relaxed) to 5 (very strict). That rating was derived from the regulation text we hold and has not yet been reviewed by a person. Rules change, so confirm current requirements with the local jurisdiction before you buy or list.
How much does a 4-bedroom home cost in Deep Creek Lake?
The typical 4-bedroom home in Garrett County is valued at $573,955 (Zillow Home Value Index), and the typical home of any size at $336,420, with all-home values up 2.1% over the past year. These are county-wide typical values, not list prices.
What brings visitors to Deep Creek Lake?
5 demand drivers sit within 50 miles of Deep Creek Lake, including Flight 93 National Memorial (286,079 published attendance), Deep Creek Lake & Wisp Resort and Fallingwater (Frank Lloyd Wright). Attendance is shown only where a source publishes it, and each driver's source is linked in the report.
What natural hazards affect Deep Creek Lake?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Garrett County "Very Low" overall, with a score of 16.0 out of 100 (a national percentile). The highest-scoring hazards we track there are winter weather and hurricane. It is a county-wide index, not an insurance quote or a flood-zone determination.
When is the weather best in Deep Creek Lake?
5 of 12 months have an average high between 60°F and 88°F (May, June, July, August and September). Ski-plus-summer climate: at least three months bring six inches or more of snowfall, and May to September is comfortable. These are 2019-2023 climate normals, not booking data.
Sources and method
- Regulation summary and strictness rating: STR Agent HUB regulation research.
- Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), county level. Data provided by Zillow Group.
- Housing, employment and population figures: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2018-2022.
- Natural hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, county level.
- Amenity counts: © OpenStreetMap contributors.
- Climate normals: Open-Meteo Historical Weather API (CC BY 4.0), 2019-2023 averages.
- Demand drivers: each entry links its own published source in the list above.
Figures come from the STR HUB national dataset dated September 21, 2026 and this page is regenerated whenever that dataset is rebuilt. County-level figures describe Garrett County as a whole, not one street or neighbourhood. The Opportunity Score (0-100) is a screening heuristic that weighs revenue (35%), regulatory climate (25%), tourism employment (15%), nearby amenities (15%) and large-home supply (10%) relative to the other tracked markets.
Confirm before you act. Short-term rental rules change. Confirm current requirements with the jurisdiction, and work with a licensed local agent who knows which properties can legally operate. This report is screening data, not investment, legal or tax advice.
Buying a short-term rental in Deep Creek Lake?
Get matched with a Deep Creek Lake agent who works short-term rentals every day and knows which properties can legally operate.
Get matched with a Deep Creek Lake STR agent →