Orlando, FL short-term rental market report (2026)
Orange County, Florida. Rules, revenue, home values, demand, climate, reach and risk, each figure with its source.
- RulesLight-touch (2/5)
- Average revenue$59K a year
- 4-BR typical value$514K
- Gross yield11.5%
- FEMA riskRelatively High
- Demand drivers within 50 mi9
Everything STR HUB holds on Orlando, FL 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.
Can you operate in Orlando?
What the rating rests on: Very STR-friendly. County vacation home permit required. Disney-area properties perform strongly.
| Rule | What we hold on file |
|---|---|
| Permit or licence | Business Tax Receipt required |
| Occupancy limit | 2 per bedroom + 2 |
| Minimum stay | None |
| Zoning | Allowed in resort zones |
| Lodging and sales taxes | 6% state + 6% tourist development |
| Penalties | Code enforcement fines |
Operating restrictions on file
- Must be in qualifying zoning district
- Annual registration with county
- Collect and remit tourist development tax
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
Revenue
Gross market averages from STR HUB market analytics, the same figures shown on the market page. They are before cleaning, management, utilities, taxes and financing, and an individual property can earn more or less.
Home values in Orange County
Zillow Home Value Index: county-wide typical values for Orange County, not list prices. A specific property can sit well above or below them.
Gross yield
Gross yield is before every operating cost and before financing. It is a screening ratio, not a cash-on-cash return.
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
9 demand drivers sit within 50 miles of Orlando, 1 of them new, planned or one-off (flagged emerging). Ordered by published attendance. Attendance appears only where a source publishes it.
Events
- Daytona 500
- When
- Mid-to-late February (one week after the Super Bowl since 2022)
- STR angle
- NASCAR's marquee season-opening race anchors Daytona Beach's February lodging peak.
- Source
- Wikipedia - Daytona 500
- Rolex 24 at Daytona (24 Hours of Daytona)
- When
- Last weekend of January or first weekend of February
- STR angle
- Kicks off Daytona's motorsport season a few weeks before the Daytona 500, giving the area an earlier, smaller lodging-demand bump in late January.
Attractions
- Walt Disney World
- When
- Year-round
- Attendance
- 49,000,000 (Average annual attendance of more than 49 million across the resort's parks in 2024 (source: Wikipedia))
- STR angle
- Baseline mega-attraction: multi-day, large-family-group trips are the single largest established demand pool for 4+ bedroom Orlando-area STRs.
- Universal Orlando Resort (Studios + Islands of Adventure)
- When
- Year-round
- Attendance
- 19,750,000 (9.75M (Universal Studios Florida) + 10.0M (Islands of Adventure) = 19.75M combined in 2023, per TEA/AECOM Global Attractions Attendance Report (source: Wikipedia))
- STR angle
- Along with Epic Universe, anchors one of the largest concentrations of family-group STR demand in the country.
- Port Canaveral cruise terminals
- When
- Year-round, peak around sailing days
- Attendance
- 8,600,000 (Over 8.6 million revenue passenger movements in FY2025 (source: Wikipedia - Port Canaveral))
- STR angle
- One of the busiest cruise ports in the world; drives consistent pre/post-cruise overnight STR demand in Cocoa Beach/Cape Canaveral, compounding with nearby Kennedy Space Center and launch-viewing tourism.
- Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
- When
- Year-round, event-driven around launches
- Attendance
- 1,700,000 (1.7 million visitors in 2016 (most recent figure found in the source used - likely understates current 2026 attendance given the increase in launch cadence since))
- STR angle
- Combined with Port Canaveral cruise traffic and the increasing cadence of nearby launches, supports year-round Space Coast STR demand beyond the traditional beach season.
- Universal Epic Universe emerging: newly opened
- When
- Year-round
- STR angle
- Multi-day Orlando theme-park trips already skew toward large family/multigenerational groups renting 3-6BR homes for a week; Epic Universe adds a 4th gate that extends average stay length in the resort corridor.
Parks and public lands
- Canaveral National Seashore
- When
- Year-round; peaks March, April, June (by recreation-visit volume, 2025).
- Attendance
- 2,496,947 (NPS recreation visits, full calendar year 2025)
- STR angle
- Supports beach-condo demand in New Smyrna Beach and Titusville alongside Space Coast/launch tourism.
Outdoor activities
- Cocoa Beach & Sebastian Inlet
- When
- Surfed year-round; fall hurricane swells and winter cold fronts bring the best waves.
- Attendance
- 700,000 (Sebastian Inlet State Park visitation per its Wikipedia infobox (2006). Separately, Wikipedia says the Easter Surfing Festival in Cocoa Beach drew 50,000 visitors in 2009.)
- STR angle
- The East Coast's best-known surf town, with rocket-launch viewing and cruise-port traffic (tracked separately) stacking on top. Beach-block condos with board storage and outdoor showers fit.
When they come
Year-round climate: at least nine months of the year have an average high between 60°F and 88°F. 9 of 12 months have an average high between 60°F and 88°F. Warmest month: August (average high 89°F). Coldest: January (average low 52°F).
- Jan70°52°ComfortableEvent
- Feb77°57°ComfortableEvent
- Mar81°60°Comfortable
- Apr83°64°Comfortable
- May87°68°Comfortable
- Jun89°73°Hot
- Jul89°75°Hot
- Aug89°75°Hot
- Sep86°73°Comfortable
- Oct83°68°Comfortable
- Nov76°61°Comfortable
- Dec72°56°Comfortable
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average high (°F) | 70 | 77 | 81 | 83 | 87 | 89 | 89 | 89 | 86 | 83 | 76 | 72 |
| Average low (°F) | 52 | 57 | 60 | 64 | 68 | 73 | 75 | 75 | 73 | 68 | 61 | 56 |
| Precipitation (in) | 1.9 | 2.5 | 2.4 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 9.3 | 9.9 | 11.6 | 12.1 | 4.0 | 4.5 | 3.8 |
| Sunshine (hours a day) | 8.5 | 9.1 | 9.9 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 10.3 | 10.4 | 10.1 | 9.6 | 9.6 | 7.9 | 7.9 |
| Event month | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Event months within 50 miles
- January: Rolex 24 at Daytona (24 Hours of Daytona)
- February: Daytona 500 and Rolex 24 at Daytona (24 Hours of Daytona)
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. Event months come from the demand drivers listed above. We do not hold monthly occupancy or rate data for this market.
Who can reach it
Largest counties within 150 miles
| County | Population |
|---|---|
| Palm Beach County, FL | 1,494,805 |
| Hillsborough County, FL | 1,468,560 |
| Orange County, FL | 1,427,403 |
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) |
|---|---|---|
| Tornado | Very High | 99.1 |
| River flooding | Relatively High | 98.4 |
| Hail | Relatively High | 98.2 |
| Hurricane | Relatively High | 98.0 |
| Wildfire | Relatively Moderate | 97.4 |
| Earthquake | Relatively Low | 75.4 |
| Coastal flooding | No Rating | 0.0 |
| Winter weather | No Rating | 0.0 |
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. Get property-level flood, wind and wildfire quotes before you buy.
Market context
Housing and jobs in Orange 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 Orlando 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 Orlando'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 Florida, so the list is not just the neighbours. Similar numbers do not mean similar rules: check each market's regulation section.
See Orlando on the map
Open Orlando on the National STR Map to see it against its neighbours, switch overlays and run the deal calculator on your own assumptions.
Orlando STR questions, answered from the data
Is Airbnb legal in Orlando?
STR HUB rates Orlando's short-term rental rules 2/5 (Light-touch) on a scale from 1 (relaxed) to 5 (very strict). Permit rule on file: Business Tax Receipt required. Rules change, so confirm current requirements with the local jurisdiction before you buy or list.
How much does an Airbnb make in Orlando?
The average short-term rental in Orlando, FL grosses $59,000 a year, on a $215 average nightly rate and 75% occupancy. That ranks #44 of the 88 tracked markets with revenue data. It is a gross market average before cleaning, management, taxes and financing, and an individual property can earn more or less.
How much does a 4-bedroom home cost in Orlando?
The typical 4-bedroom home in Orange County is valued at $513,913 (Zillow Home Value Index), and the typical home of any size at $400,602, with all-home values down 1.2% over the past year. These are county-wide typical values, not list prices.
What is the gross rental yield in Orlando?
11.5%: average annual short-term rental revenue of $59,000 divided by the county's typical 4-bedroom home value of $513,913. It is before every operating cost and before financing, so treat it as a screening ratio, not a cash-on-cash return.
What brings visitors to Orlando?
9 demand drivers sit within 50 miles of Orlando, including Walt Disney World (49,000,000 published attendance), Universal Orlando Resort (Studios + Islands of Adventure) (19,750,000 published attendance) and Port Canaveral cruise terminals (8,600,000 published attendance). Attendance is shown only where a source publishes it, and each driver's source is linked in the report.
Sources and method
- Regulation summary and strictness rating: STR Agent HUB regulation research.
- Revenue, nightly rate and occupancy: STR Agent HUB market analytics.
- 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.
- Park visitation: National Park Service, NPS Visitor Use Statistics.
- 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 Orange 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.
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