Matagorda, Texas Short-Term Rental Market
Matagorda TX STRs averaged $203/night at 42.8% occupancy in April 2026, serving a Gulf Coast fishing and beach audience.
Quick Answer: Matagorda, Texas is an active short-term rental market. average occupancy is 53%. average monthly revenue is $3,860. average daily rate is $271. the top operator is Evolve with 774 listings. market score is 63/100 (grade C).
Market data reflects the Texas East Area regional market, which includes Matagorda. Regulations, taxes, and permit details below are specific to Matagorda.
Market Score Breakdown
Five dimensions Apivex evaluates per market.
Market Overview
Matagorda is an unincorporated census-designated place on the Texas Gulf Coast roughly 100 miles southwest of Houston, with a resident population of approximately 313. The short-term rental market here is built almost entirely on outdoor recreation: surf and bay fishing from the Matagorda Jetties, beach access along 23 drivable miles of Gulf shoreline, and birding at Matagorda Bay Nature Park along the Central Flyway.
In April 2026, listings averaged $203 per night with occupancy of 42.8%, producing average monthly revenue of $2,435. RevPAR stood at $87. Year-over-year, occupancy edged up 1.1 percentage points while ADR declined 3.4% and revenue was essentially flat at -0.2%.
Listing-type and bedroom-mix data for this dataset reflect the broader regional market associated with Matagorda. Within that pool, entire-place properties account for the large majority of supply, consistent with the coastal residential character of the area where detached beach houses and cottages dominate the rental mix. Channels skew heavily toward Airbnb, with VRBO as a secondary platform.
Seasonal Patterns
| Month | Occupancy | ADR | Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 33% | $161 | $1,617 |
| Feb | 41% | $161 | $1,627 |
| Mar | 50% | $211 | $2,695 |
| Apr | 41% | $206 | $2,332 |
| May | 44% | $231 | $2,694 |
| Jun | 53% | $271 | $3,778 |
| Jul | 53% | $275 | $4,009 |
| Aug | 42% | $236 | $2,765 |
| Sep | 39% | $215 | $2,247 |
| Oct | 42% | $205 | $2,398 |
| Nov | 41% | $201 | $2,222 |
| Dec | 37% | $190 | $2,096 |
Top Short-Term Rental Operators in Matagorda
Ranked by total active listings. Useful for understanding the competitive landscape.
| # | Operator | Listings | Reviews | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evolve | 774 | 27,617 | ★ 4.71 |
| 2 | Vacasa | 238 | 8,722 | ★ 4.67 |
| 3 | FCR Partners, LP | 103 | 172 | ★ 4.68 |
| 4 | Neal’s Lodges | 97 | 170 | ★ 4.79 |
| 5 | 979 Vacation Property Services | 96 | 3,231 | ★ 4.62 |
What Kind of STR Should I Buy in Matagorda?
Revenue and pricing by property type, tier, and bedroom count.
Revenue by Bedroom Count
| 1 bed | 7,144 |
| 2 bed | 5,376 |
| 3 bed | 5,660 |
| 4 bed | 2,451 |
| 5 bed | 1,530 |
ADR by Property Tier
| Entire Home | $281 |
| Luxury | $538 |
| Professionally Managed | $442 |
Revenue by Dwelling Type
| Apartment | $2,174 |
| Entire Place | $4,002 |
| House | $4,276 |
Booking Channel Mix
Distribution of bookings across major STR platforms.
| Channel | Share |
|---|---|
| airbnb | 46.4% |
| vrbo | 10.1% |
| both | 43.5% |
Investment Analysis
Monthly revenue averaged $2,435 in April 2026. Houses generated $2,608/month, outperforming the market average by about 7%. Entire-place listings averaged $2,513/month. Apartments, where available, averaged $1,679/month.
ADR tiers reveal a meaningful performance gap across operator types. Professionally managed listings commanded $315/night versus the market average of $203, a 55% premium. Luxury-tier properties reached $443/night, nearly 2.2x the market average.
No Zillow housing value data is available for this area, so cost-of-entry figures and gross yield calculations cannot be derived from verified sources.
On market-quality indicators, Matagorda’s investability score stands at 89.0 out of 100, the highest composite score in the market snapshot. Revenue growth scored 60.7 and rental demand 58.5. The seasonality score of 75.1 signals significant concentration in summer months, which investors should factor into cash-flow modeling. The overall market score is 63.0 and the regulation score is 60.0, reflecting the permissive, no-permit STR environment.
Revenue Trend (5 yr)
ADR & Occupancy Trends (5 yr)
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Booking Insights
Average booking lead time is 39 days, meaning most guests commit roughly five to six weeks before arrival. Average length of stay is 3.8 nights, indicating a primarily weekend-and-long-weekend booking pattern typical of drive-market coastal destinations.
The combination of short lead time and sub-4-night stays points to a pricing strategy centered on the 4-6 week booking window rather than deep-advance discounting. Last-minute rates can hold firm given the limited lodging supply in this small community. Weekend premiums (Friday-Saturday) are standard practice in coastal Texas markets with a Houston drive-market base. Minimum-stay policies of 2-3 nights on peak weekends help protect revenue per booking while keeping turnover manageable for a remote location.
Short-Term Rental Regulations
Matagorda is an unincorporated CDP with no municipal government and no city-level STR ordinance. Texas has no statewide STR licensing requirement. No county-level STR permit, registration, owner-occupancy requirement, primary-residence restriction, or annual night cap was found for unincorporated Matagorda County. Short-term rentals are permitted and openly marketed.
The primary compliance obligation is tax. The Texas state hotel occupancy tax of 6% applies to any rental under 30 consecutive days. As a Gulf Coast county, Matagorda County is authorized to levy a county hotel occupancy tax of up to 7% under Texas Tax Code Chapter 352; the exact adopted county rate could not be confirmed from primary sources, so operators should verify the current combined rate with the Matagorda County Tax Assessor-Collector before listing.
Texas law requires hosts to provide guests with emergency contact information, occupancy limits, noise rules, and parking information. Beach-access rules (vehicle permit required, 15 mph beach speed limit, no glass on the beach) apply to guests but are not STR-specific. Enforcement is minimal given the rural, unincorporated character of the community. No STR-specific regulatory changes were found in the past 24 months.
Market Comparison
The US STR market median occupancy runs approximately 55% and median ADR approximately $220. Matagorda’s April 2026 occupancy of 42.8% is about 12 points below the national median, and its $203 ADR sits slightly below. The gap reflects the market’s small size, remote location, and niche appeal: Matagorda draws a self-directed outdoor recreation crowd rather than mass tourism volume.
Evolve leads the regional market by listing count with 774 properties and 27,617 reviews (average rating 4.711). Vacasa manages 238 listings with 8,722 reviews (rating 4.665). 979 Vacation Property Services, a regional operator with a local focus, holds 96 listings and 3,231 reviews (rating 4.619). FCR Partners (103 listings, rating 4.684) and Neal’s Lodges (97 listings, rating 4.794) round out the top five. Note that listing counts reflect the broader regional dataset associated with this market area.
Compared to other coastal Texas markets, Matagorda occupies the quieter, lower-density end of the spectrum. The investability score of 89.0 stands out as notably high relative to the below-median occupancy, suggesting the combination of permissive regulations, stable coastal demand, and lower property costs (no Zillow data available to confirm) scores well on the model’s inputs.
Frequently Asked Questions About Matagorda, Texas
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