Short Term Rental Management in Livingston, Montana

We are a Bozeman based short term rental management company and we take on properties in Livingston. Being based in Bozeman matters more here than anywhere else in the region, for a reason written into Livingston's own code.

Livingston rewrote its rules effective January 1, 2026

Livingston adopted a new zoning code, Chapter 30, on December 2, 2025, effective January 1, 2026. Short term rentals are regulated inside it rather than as a standalone ordinance. The code defines a short term rental as a dwelling unit, or a portion of one, rented to guests for periods of less than 30 consecutive days, and splits them into Type 1, owner occupied, and Type 2, not owner occupied.

Both types are allowed by right in the R1, R2, LMU, HMU, CBD and GC districts. Both are not allowed in Light Industrial, Industrial and Public Community. The code also requires licensing and performance standards under its own short term rental section, so the specific permit steps, fees and inspection scope should be confirmed with Livingston Building and Planning before you count on anything.

One reported requirement is worth reading twice if you do not live in Park County. Coverage at the time of adoption indicated that a Type 2 rental, meaning one you do not live in, must supply a 24 hour emergency contact located within 50 miles of the property, and that existing rentals are not grandfathered. Confirm that with the city, but if it holds, Bozeman sits inside that radius. That single line is why a Bozeman based manager can serve Livingston properly and why a national management company operating from another state cannot.

Outside Livingston city limits

Park County has no countywide zoning. Zoning exists only in seven small citizen initiated districts, and two of them, Paradise Valley and Suce Creek, had their regulations re-signed in late 2025. If your property is in Paradise Valley, Emigrant, Pray or Gardiner, the Livingston code does not reach you, but the state requirements below still do. Gardiner also sits in its own resort tax district, which adds a local percentage on lodging that Livingston does not have.

What the state requires everywhere in Montana

Every Montana short term rental owes the state lodging taxes: 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.

You also need a Montana public accommodation license for what the state calls a tourist home. It is issued by the Department of Public Health and Human Services, and you apply through Park County Environmental Health, which handles the plan review and inspection. Watch the threshold mismatch: Livingston's zoning code uses less than 30 days, while the state health license uses less than 28.

Separately, Montana's 2025 property tax reform created a reduced rate for primary residences and for 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.

Livingston is the most saturated rental market in Montana

According to the University of Montana Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research, Park County had the highest short term rental saturation of any county in the state as of 2023, with rentals reaching 11.5 percent of total housing stock at peak. That cuts both ways.

The demand is real. Gardiner is the north entrance to Yellowstone, and the road from Gardiner through the park to Cooke City is the only one generally open to regular vehicles year round, so the north side has a winter season that most of the park does not. But saturation that high means your listing is competing against a lot of others, and pricing and listing quality decide who books and who sits empty.

How we would work with you

Being honest about geography: we are in Bozeman, about a half hour east over Bozeman Pass on I-90, and that pass is a real winter drive. We currently manage in Bozeman and Belgrade and we are taking on Livingston properties. Before you sign anything we will tell you plainly how your property would be staffed and how fast someone reaches it, rather than after.

What we handle: dynamic nightly pricing, listings on Airbnb and Vrbo, guest communication around the clock, professional turnovers, maintenance, permit filing and renewal, 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 Livingston zoning code, Park County and the Montana Department of Revenue on September 3, 2026. Livingston's code is new and still settling. Confirm current requirements with the City of Livingston before you rely on this.