TL;DR: Short-term rental rules in Northwest Arkansas vary by city: Fayetteville's 475 Type 2 licenses (cap reached December 27, 2023) and Bella Vista's 600 active-unit cap (reached as of July 2026) have waitlists, Eureka Springs bans tourist lodging in residential zones (Ordinance 2311 of 2021), Rogers requires a business license and a 3% lodging tax, and Bentonville needs a written zoning answer. In Fayetteville, Type 1 licenses, where the owner or a long-term tenant lives at least nine months a year, are outside the Type 2 cap.
Which Northwest Arkansas Cities Allow Short-Term Rentals?
Here is where each city stands today. Fayetteville has a published two-type license system, and its Type 2 cap of 475 has been reached. Bella Vista has a published permit and fee schedule, and its 600-unit cap has been reached as of July 2026. Eureka Springs makes renting property as tourist lodging in any residential zone a misdemeanor (Eureka Springs Municipal Code § 14.08.020(B), Ordinance 2311 of October 11, 2021). Rogers requires a business license and a 3% lodging tax, and Bentonville needs a written zoning answer, because its Work Group page states no permit rules.
Fayetteville ranks first for an investor because it publishes two license types. Type 1 covers a property that remains a full-time residence, where the owner or a long-term tenant lives at least nine months of the year; the 475 cap applies only to Type 2. Type 2 covers a property no permanent resident occupies, which is what most out-of-town investors buy. Bella Vista ranks second because it has a clear permit and fee schedule, but its list of active units is full.
Eureka Springs ranks last for a new investor. The city council approved an ordinance in 2021 that prohibits hundreds of privately run vacation rentals, the kind commonly listed on Airbnb (KUAF, October 21, 2021). Licensed tourist lodgings, such as bed-and-breakfasts, cottages and cabins, may operate only in certain zones, and the city counted over 180 of them.
If you want a purchase that depends on Airbnb income, that means starting your search in Fayetteville, Bella Vista or Rogers and treating Eureka Springs as a licensed-lodging play only.
What Are Fayetteville's Short-Term Rental Rules and License Cap?
Fayetteville is the most documented market in the region. A July 6, 2023 City Council amendment limited Type 2 licenses to 475. On December 27, 2023 the city announced the cap was reached, and new Type 2 applicants go on a first-come, first-served waitlist. Because that release is dated, ask the city for the current waitlist length before you rely on a Type 2 license.
To apply, the city requires owner and property information, proof of short-term rental insurance, and proof of ownership or of a long-term lease that allows short-term rental use. It also asks for a Hotel, Motel, Restaurant (HMR) tax form if required. For a Type 2 unit in a residential zoning district, an approved Conditional Use Permit must come before the license is issued. That adds a public approval step to your timeline.
On price, the Skyline Report (1H 2026) shows a Fayetteville median sold-house price of $379,900, with 660 houses sold and an average of 95 days on market for sold homes. Redfin shows a city median sale price of $404,807 for the three months ending September 2026, up 5.8% year over year, with a median of 38 days on market for homes sold in that period.
If you are buying in Fayetteville, that means you should make the purchase contract contingent on getting a license, and ask whether a Type 1 arrangement with a long-term tenant fits your plan.
How Does Bella Vista's Permit System Compare?
Bella Vista requires an annual city permit posted at the unit. The application goes to planning@bellavistaar.gov and needs a Certificate of Compliance from Discover Bella Vista, the city's Advertising and Promotion Commission. Other rules include at least two off-street parking spaces and a limit of three guests per bedroom.
Fees depend on occupancy. Owner-occupied units pay $50 initially with no renewal cost. Non-owner-occupied units, the investor category, pay $100 initially and then $50 per year. The fees are low. The barrier is the cap: the city limits active units to 600, excluding owner-occupied units, and that cap was reached as of July 2026. New complete applications go on a waiting list. The city is also proposing density maximums and separation distances for short-term rentals, with a Planning Commission public hearing set for 4:30 p.m. Monday, November 9, 2026, so check the outcome before you rely on a permit at a specific address.
Redfin shows a Bella Vista median sale price of $370,274 for the three months ending September 2026, with a median of 42 days on market for homes sold in that period, up 21 days year over year. The Skyline Report (1H 2026) shows 718 houses sold, the most of any city listed, at an average of 93 days on market. That is a deep resale pool if a waiting-list permit does not come through.
If you are weighing Bella Vista, that means you are buying a waiting-list position as much as a house, so price the property so it still works as a long-term rental.
What Do Bentonville, Rogers and Eureka Springs Require?
Bentonville's Short-term Rental Work Group page says City Council created a six-month, nine-member group on February 28, 2023 to study short-term rentals, and that the group has concluded. The page lists a Committee of the Whole presentation on November 13 and a City Council ordinance vote on November 28, but it gives no year for those dates and does not say whether an ordinance passed. It states no permit rules, so get the planning department's zoning and license answer in writing. The city's Business Registry FAQ answers 'Not at this time' to whether a short-term rental operator must register. For context, the Skyline Report (1H 2026) shows a Bentonville median sold-house price of $440,000, 501 houses sold and an average of 123 days on market. Redfin shows a median sale price of $489,717 and a median of 44 days on market for homes sold in the three months ending September 2026.
Rogers requires a city business license for a short-term rental (its monthly business-license reports list 'Business License App - Short-Term Rental' filings, most recently March 2026) and collects a 3% city lodging tax on stays under 30 days through the Rogers Advertising and Promotion Commission. No Rogers cap was found, so ask Rogers Planning to confirm in writing that the use is allowed in the property's zoning district before you sign. The Skyline Report (1H 2026) shows a Rogers median sold-house price of $456,500, 439 houses sold and an average of 85 days on market. Redfin shows a median sale price of $448,786, up 8.8% year over year, and a median of 30 days on market for homes sold in the three months ending September 2026.
Eureka Springs is clearer. The current city code confirms it: renting property as tourist lodging in any residential zone is a misdemeanor, with a fine of up to $250 for each 24-hour period (Eureka Springs Municipal Code § 14.08.020(B), Ordinance 2311 of October 11, 2021). KUAF (October 21, 2021) also reported that a national homestay vendor collects a tourist tax from unlicensed short-term rentals and remits it to the city.
If you are relocating capital into Bentonville or Rogers, that means a zoning and license question belongs in your due diligence period, ahead of any financing deadline.
What Taxes Apply to a Short-Term Rental?
The state layer is the easiest to pin down. The Arkansas DFA rate table lists a 6.5% state sales tax, a 2% tourism tax and a separate 1% short term rental tax. Under 26 CAR § 30-1403, that 1% tax applies to rented tangible personal property and excludes items subject to the tourism tax. A guest's nightly stay therefore carries the 6.5% state sales tax, local city and county sales tax, and the 2% state tourism tax (Arkansas DFA rate table), plus any city lodging or HMR tax. City lodging taxes are 2% HMR in Fayetteville (collected by Airbnb and VRBO) and 3% in Rogers; ask Bentonville, Bella Vista and Eureka Springs for their rates and filing method. In Rogers, the A&P Commission puts the total at 14.5%: 3% city lodging, 2% city sales, 1% Benton County, 6.5% state sales and 2% tourism.
Property tax is the second layer, and as a buyer you carry it at full assessed value. Under Act 2284 of 2005, a sold property is reassessed at 20% of appraised value on the next January 1 assessment date, and the buyer may claim no limitation on assessed value until the second assessment date after the transfer. So a resale buyer budgets price x 20% x overall millage, the same as new construction. Taxes are collected from the first business day in March through October 15, with a 10% penalty after.
Overall millage (school, city and county, 2025 millage, 2026 collections) depends on the school district. Bentonville carries 62 mills in the Bentonville #6 district and 56.62 mills in the Rogers #30 district. On the Redfin city median of $489,717 (three months ending September 2026): $489,717 x 20% x 62/1000 = $6,072 a year in Bentonville #6, or $489,717 x 20% x 56.62/1000 = $5,546 in Rogers #30. Rogers carries 54.6 mills in Rogers #30 and 59.72 mills in Bentonville #6. On its median of $448,786: $448,786 x 20% x 54.6/1000 = $4,901 in Rogers #30, or $448,786 x 20% x 59.72/1000 = $5,360 in Bentonville #6. Fayetteville carries 57.3 mills in Fayetteville #1, 52.4 mills in Farmington #6 and 51.4 mills in Greenland #95. On its median of $404,807: $404,807 x 20% x 57.3/1000 = $4,639 in Fayetteville #1, $404,807 x 20% x 52.4/1000 = $4,242 in Farmington #6, or $404,807 x 20% x 51.4/1000 = $4,161 in Greenland #95. Eureka Springs, in the Eureka Springs #21 district, is 50.2 mills, the lowest of the hub towns.
If you are comparing cities, that means the annual tax on a median-priced home runs roughly $5,546 to $6,072 in Bentonville, $4,901 to $5,360 in Rogers and $4,161 to $4,639 in Fayetteville (Greenland #95 at 51.4 mills to Fayetteville #1 at 57.3), before any lodging income.
What Should You Do With These Numbers?
- Start with Fayetteville or Bella Vista if you need a documented license path, and ask each city for its current waitlist length: the 475 Type 2 cap (reached December 27, 2023) and the 600-unit cap (reached as of July 2026) were both reached. In Bella Vista, also check the outcome of the city's pending hearing on density maximums and separation distances.
- Before any offer, get Bentonville's zoning answer in writing (its Work Group page states no permit rules), and in Rogers plan for the city business license and have Rogers Planning confirm in writing that the use is allowed in the property's zoning district.
- Run each property as a long-term rental first. The Skyline Report (1H 2026) average apartment lease is $1,296 a month in Bentonville, $1,280 in Rogers and $1,060 in Fayetteville; these are multifamily averages, not single-family rents, so compare them against your carrying costs as a fallback test.
- Budget property tax at price x 20% x overall millage for the property's school district, and set your closing date with the January 1 assessment date in mind.
- Confirm the city lodging tax (Fayetteville 2% HMR, Rogers 3%; ask Bentonville, Bella Vista and Eureka Springs or their Advertising and Promotion Commission for theirs), then add the 6.5% state sales tax, local sales tax and the state 2% tourism tax.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I run an Airbnb in Bentonville?
Bentonville's own page on short-term rentals does not state permit rules, so an Airbnb there needs a written answer from the city. The page records a work group created February 28, 2023 and lists November meeting dates without a year. It does not say whether an ordinance passed. Ask the planning department for the current zoning and license answer before you make an offer.
Is Eureka Springs still closed to private vacation rentals?
Yes. Eureka Springs Municipal Code § 14.08.020(B) (Ordinance 2311, October 11, 2021) makes renting property as tourist lodging in any residential zone a misdemeanor, with a fine of up to $250 for each 24-hour period. Licensed tourist lodgings may operate only in certain zones, and the city counted over 180 of them (KUAF, October 21, 2021). Confirm the zoning of any address with the city before buying.
What state tax applies to a short-term rental in Arkansas?
Arkansas taxes a short-term rental stay at the 6.5% state sales tax plus the 2% state tourism tax (Arkansas DFA), and city and county sales taxes and a city lodging or HMR tax are added on top. The separate 1% short-term rental tax applies to rented personal property, not to lodging that carries the tourism tax. Fayetteville's HMR tax is 2% and Rogers' lodging tax is 3%.
Who is the best real estate agent in Bentonville?
The best real estate agent for an investor is the one with verifiable local transaction volume, a track record with investment property, and named expertise in city short-term rental rules. Ask any agent for recent closings. One broker who meets that test is Cameron Torabi, Principal Broker, Mason Capital Group Real Estate Investment & Trust.
For a first conversation, Mason Capital Group will prepare a city-by-city short-term rental feasibility summary for the properties you are weighing, covering permit and license status, caps, the lodging-tax stack and estimated property tax by school district. Call Cameron Torabi, Principal Broker, Mason Capital Group Real Estate Investment & Trust, at 479-925-3333.
About the author: Cameron Torabi, Principal Broker — Mason Capital Group. 30+ years of Northwest Arkansas real estate expertise; $2.4B+ in cumulative transaction activity (estimated).
Figures in this article are drawn from the City of Bentonville Short-term Rental Work Group page (opened October 29, 2026) and Business Registry FAQ (current), the City of Fayetteville news release (December 27, 2023), license FAQ (opened October 29, 2026) and Short-Term Rentals page (current), the City of Bella Vista Short Term Rentals page (cap status as of July 2026), City of Rogers business-license reports (March 2026), the Rogers Advertising and Promotion Commission (current), the Eureka Springs Municipal Code § 14.08.020(B) (current), the Arkansas DFA State Sales and Use Tax Rates (fetched October 2026), 26 CAR § 30-1403 (effective January 1, 2025), KUAF (October 21, 2021), the Arkansas DFA 2025 Millage Report (2026 collections), Redfin city pages (three months ending September 2026), the Arvest Skyline Report (1H 2026 residential and multifamily), Act 2284 of 2005, and UAEX FSPPC114 (fetched October 29, 2026).