Rockford, Illinois Short-Term Rental Market
The Rockford, IL area STR market earned $189 ADR at 61% occupancy in June 2026.
Quick Answer: Rockford, Illinois is an active short-term rental market. average occupancy in the Illinois Area market area is 59%. average monthly revenue in the Illinois Area market area is $3,059. average daily rate in the Illinois Area market area is $183. the top operator in the Illinois Area market area is Evolve with 100 listings. market score is 97/100 (grade A).
Market data reflects the Illinois Area regional market, which includes Rockford. Regulations, taxes, and permit details below are specific to Rockford.
Market Score Breakdown
Five dimensions StaySTRA evaluates per market.
Market Overview
Rockford is Illinois’ third-largest city, population 147,486, and the seat of Winnebago County, sitting along the Rock River in north-central Illinois roughly 90 miles northwest of Chicago. Winnebago County has become a growing Midwest sports-tourism destination: visitor spending hit a record $523.4 million in 2024, up from $515.4 million in 2023 and $483 million pre-pandemic in 2019, supporting an estimated 4,650 to 4,690 tourism jobs and about $166 million in payroll. Growth has been driven by sports events and new attractions, including the Hard Rock Casino Rockford, which opened August 29, 2024, and multi-year commitments to host Ironman 70.3, an AHL All-Star Classic, and the Women’s Baseball World Cup. A precise annual visitor head count was not published in available tourism reports; the region tracks spending and jobs rather than visitor totals.
Short-term rental performance data in this data set is tracked at a shared level with several other north-central Illinois markets rather than uniquely for Rockford, so the figures below describe the wider Rockford area STR market. In June 2026, the most recent month with complete data, the area’s average daily rate across all listings was $189.28 at 61.19% occupancy, generating average monthly revenue of $3,147.16 per listing. Occupancy is down slightly year over year (down 0.92%) and ADR is down slightly as well (down 0.62%), while average monthly revenue is up 3.51% year over year.
Bedroom mix, listing-type mix, channel mix, and market-score data in this data set are tracked at a shared regional level with at least one other Illinois market (Ottawa) rather than measured uniquely for Rockford, so this profile omits those figures rather than present regional numbers as if they were city-specific. Booking data for the area shows an average lead time of 56.47 days and an average length of stay of 4.02 nights.
Seasonal Patterns
| Month | Occupancy |
|---|---|
| Jan | 41% |
| Feb | 48% |
| Mar | 53% |
| Apr | 52% |
| May | 54% |
| Jun | 60% |
| Jul | 63% |
| Aug | 59% |
| Sep | 53% |
| Oct | 54% |
| Nov | 50% |
| Dec | 46% |
Month-by-month nightly rates and revenue figures for Rockford are available to StaySTRA Pro members. Unlock with StaySTRA Pro or analyze a specific address free.
Top Short-Term Rental Operators in Illinois Area market area
Ranked by total active listings. Useful for understanding the competitive landscape. Operator data is published for the Illinois Area market as a whole, which includes Rockford, so these counts are not Rockford-only figures.
| # | Operator | Listings | Reviews | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evolve | 100 | 4,033 | ★ 4.69 |
| 2 | Harbor Inn | 83 | 979 | ★ 4.74 |
| 3 | MySuiteSpot | 67 | 4,900 | ★ 4.77 |
| 4 | Rosebud Rentals | 58 | 3,513 | ★ 4.78 |
| 5 | Southern Illinois Vacation Rentals | 55 | 5,325 | ★ 4.94 |
What Kind of STR Should I Buy in Rockford?
Revenue and nightly-rate breakdowns by bedroom count, property tier, and dwelling type for Rockford are available to StaySTRA Pro members. Unlock with StaySTRA Pro or analyze a specific address free.
Booking Channel Mix
Distribution of bookings across major STR platforms.
| Channel | Share |
|---|---|
| airbnb | 57.1% |
| vrbo | 5.9% |
| both | 37% |
Home Value Trends (Rockford)
Typical home values, median sale prices, and the 10-year price trend for Rockford are available to StaySTRA Pro members. Unlock with StaySTRA Pro or analyze a specific address free.
Booking Insights
Booking-window and length-of-stay analysis for Rockford — how far ahead guests book and how to price around it — is available to StaySTRA Pro members. Unlock with StaySTRA Pro or analyze a specific address free.
Short-Term Rental Regulations
Rockford permits short-term rentals, defined as stays under 30 consecutive days, but requires operators to register through the City’s Rental / Short-Term Rental Registry, which sits under the Residential Quality Support Ordinance and a dedicated Short-Term Rental Ordinance. The framework tiers rentals into three types: Type 1 covers owner-occupied primary residences; Type 2 covers non-owner-occupied properties in areas zoned for single-family homes, with no stated cap on rental nights; and Type 3 covers non-owner-occupied properties capped at roughly 90 rental nights per year.
Registration and approval typically require a property inspection and can take several weeks. Reported registration fees vary across sources, commonly cited anywhere from about $25 to $100 per year for a business license up to $200 to $500 depending on property size, so operators should confirm the exact current fee directly with the City. Renewal is annual, with periodic inspections expected. Operational rules focus on nuisance control: limits on the number of vehicles parked on the street and in the driveway, a ban on large parties, and a requirement that the owner or operator respond to noise complaints within one hour.
On taxes, Airbnb collects Rockford’s local Hotel/Motel Tourism Tax, about 5%, on stays of 30 nights or fewer, but Vrbo does not collect this tax for hosts, leaving operators responsible for remitting it themselves on Vrbo bookings. As of July 1, 2025, Illinois also applies its statewide Hotel Operators’ Occupation Tax to short-term rentals, at 6% of 94% of gross receipts, which operators must remit regardless of platform. In late 2024, a city committee advanced additional STR regulations targeting nuisance activity, including the parking limits, party ban, and one-hour noise-complaint response requirement described above. Enforcement is rated moderate.
Market Comparison
The Rockford area’s 61.19% occupancy in June 2026 runs above the roughly 55% median occupancy typically seen across the broader U.S. short-term rental market, though its $189.28 average daily rate sits below the roughly $220 national median ADR, reflecting Rockford’s position as an affordable Midwest secondary market rather than a high-end resort destination.
Top property manager data in this data set is tracked at a shared regional level with at least one other Illinois market (Ottawa) rather than uniquely for Rockford, so this profile does not present specific operator names, listing counts, or ratings as Rockford-specific. Rockford’s own typical home value of $187,244.74 is notably affordable relative to national norms, and combined with the area’s above-average occupancy, supports one of the stronger rental-yield profiles in this project. Rockford’s growing sports-tourism infrastructure, including the 2024 opening of the Hard Rock Casino and multi-year commitments to major athletic events, is a more distinctive local growth driver than anything visible in the shared regional performance data alone.
Frequently Asked Questions About Rockford, Illinois
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