Short Term Rental Management in Ennis, Montana

We are a Bozeman based short term rental management company, about an hour from Ennis by way of Norris, and we take on Ennis properties.

Ennis licenses short term rentals, and the details are specific

Ennis regulates short term rentals through its business licensing code rather than through zoning. The town defines a short term rental as a dwelling unit, or a portion of one, offered for a fee for fewer than 30 consecutive nights.

To operate you need a Town of Ennis business license with a short term rental classification, currently $150 a year. The license year runs July 1 to June 30 and renews in July, with a $10 per month late fee after July 31. You also submit a completed Town of Ennis short term rental inspection checklist, notarized, every year.

That checklist is not a formality. It runs to 23 items an owner has to initial, covering GFCI outlets in the kitchen, bathrooms and exterior, labeled breakers, no extension cords in place of permanent wiring, fire apparatus access within 150 feet, a 5 to 10 pound extinguisher within 10 feet of the kitchen, smoke detectors in every sleeping area and on every level, carbon monoxide detectors outside bedrooms, guardrails on decks over 30 inches, an egress window or door in every sleeping space, and deadbolts that open from the inside without a key. You attach your Montana lodging tax permit and your public accommodation license to it.

Madison County adds a public sleeping accommodation plan review and an annual health and safety inspection through the county sanitarian. Madison County has not adopted countywide zoning, so outside town limits the county land use layer is thin, but the state and county health requirements still apply.

Ennis is a seasonal market, and the season has hard edges

Ennis demand is built on fishing and hunting, and both run on published dates. Montana's western district stream fishing season runs from the third Saturday in May through November 30. In 2026 archery season for deer and elk opened September 5, and general rifle season runs October 24 through November 29. The Fourth of July rodeo has run since 1935, the Fly Fishing and Outdoor Festival lands in late August, and the Hunters Feed is held the Friday before rifle season opens.

That structure means June through November carries the year and December through April has no comparable driver. Pricing an Ennis property the way you would price a Bozeman one leaves money on the table in September and leaves it empty in February. That is a pricing problem, and pricing is the part of this we do every day.

What the state requires everywhere in Montana

Every Montana short term rental owes a 4 percent lodging facility use tax plus a 4 percent lodging facility sales tax, 8 percent combined, filed quarterly. Airbnb and Vrbo collect and remit for bookings made through them. You remain responsible for anything booked directly. Ennis is not a resort tax community, so unlike Big Sky or Virginia City there is no additional local percentage.

You also need a Montana public accommodation license for what the state calls a tourist home, issued by the Department of Public Health and Human Services and applied for through the Madison County sanitarian. Note the threshold: the state health license uses less than 28 days while the town definition uses 30.

Separately, Montana's 2025 property tax reform created a reduced rate for primary residences and long term rentals. A long term rental has to be rented in blocks of 28 days or more for seven months or more a year. A short term rental cannot meet that test and qualifies for neither reduced rate.

Being straight with you about geography

We are based in Bozeman, not Ennis. That is roughly 55 miles, about an hour, south on US-287 to Norris and west on MT-84. We currently manage properties in Bozeman and Belgrade, and we are taking on Ennis owners. Before you sign anything we will tell you plainly how your property would be staffed and how quickly someone reaches it, rather than after. You should ask every manager you talk to that same question.

What we handle

Dynamic nightly pricing built around the actual season, listings on Airbnb and Vrbo, guest communication around the clock, professional turnovers, maintenance and vendor coordination, town license and state permit filing, and a monthly statement showing every reservation and your net. We charge a percentage of the nightly rate. Cleaning is charged to the guest. Consumables are billed at cost with no markup. Owners are paid by the 10th of every month.

There is no long term commitment. The agreement runs month to month rather than on a fixed one or two year term, and either side can end it with 90 days written notice. That window exists so guests who already hold a reservation are not disrupted, and so your listings, calendar and reviews hand back in good order.

Talk to us

Call or text (406) 570-1155 or email Info@BozemanBnB.com. BozemanBnB, 2078 Stadium Dr Suite 102, Bozeman, MT 59715.

Regulations on this page were verified against the Town of Ennis code and fee schedule, Madison County and the Montana Department of Revenue on September 3, 2026. Confirm current requirements with the Town of Ennis before you rely on this.