Rocky Mount, Missouri Short-Term Rental Market
Rocky Mount area STRs (Lake of the Ozarks) averaged $401/night at 56.1% occupancy in June 2026, with a county lodging tax struck down in 2024.
Quick Answer: Rocky Mount, Missouri is an active short-term rental market. average occupancy in the Lake of Ozarks market area is 47%. average monthly revenue in the Lake of Ozarks market area is $5,461. average daily rate in the Lake of Ozarks market area is $400. the top operator in the Lake of Ozarks market area is Evolve with 354 listings. market score is 51/100 (grade D).
Market data reflects the Lake of Ozarks regional market, which includes Rocky Mount. Regulations, taxes, and permit details below are specific to Rocky Mount.
Market Score Breakdown
Five dimensions StaySTRA evaluates per market.
Market Overview
Rocky Mount is a small unincorporated lakeside community on the Lake of the Ozarks in eastern Morgan County, Missouri, roughly six miles southwest of Eldon. It functions as a vacation and second-home destination rather than a standalone tourist hub, drawing boaters, anglers, and residents to the lake’s 1,150 miles of shoreline. Visitors are predominantly regional drive-market travelers from Missouri and neighboring Midwest states seeking water recreation, bass, crappie, and catfish fishing, and lakefront rentals. The resident population skews older, with a median age around 56 and roughly 31% aged 65 or older, reflecting a retiree and seasonal-homeowner base.
Because StaySTRA’s short-term rental performance data for this submarket is shared across the Lake of the Ozarks cluster (Rocky Mount, Gravois Mills, Sunrise Beach, and Warsaw), this profile frames occupancy, rate, and revenue figures as describing the Rocky Mount area (Lake of the Ozarks) STR market rather than claiming Rocky Mount-only precision.
In June 2026, that area STR market averaged 56.06% occupancy and a $400.89 average daily rate, with average monthly revenue of $5,787.53 per active listing. Year over year, occupancy fell 2.79 points, ADR fell a sharper 7.80%, and revenue slipped a modest 0.38%, a softer overall trend than several other markets in this pipeline.
Listing count, bedroom mix, and channel split data for this area are tracked at a shared regional level rather than uniquely for Rocky Mount, so this profile omits those specific breakdowns.
Seasonal Patterns
| Month | Occupancy |
|---|---|
| Jan | 22% |
| Feb | 27% |
| Mar | 42% |
| Apr | 34% |
| May | 43% |
| Jun | 59% |
| Jul | 69% |
| Aug | 52% |
| Sep | 34% |
| Oct | 28% |
| Nov | 27% |
| Dec | 23% |
Month-by-month nightly rates and revenue figures for Rocky Mount are available to StaySTRA Pro members. Unlock with StaySTRA Pro or analyze a specific address free.
Top Short-Term Rental Operators in Lake of Ozarks market area
Ranked by total active listings. Useful for understanding the competitive landscape. Operator data is published for the Lake of Ozarks market as a whole, which includes Rocky Mount, so these counts are not Rocky Mount-only figures.
| # | Operator | Listings | Reviews | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evolve | 354 | 13,902 | ★ 4.73 |
| 2 | LakeDays.Rentals | 213 | 4,973 | ★ 4.80 |
| 3 | YourLakeVacation | 139 | 1,600 | ★ 4.75 |
| 4 | Shores Vacation Rentals | 106 | 3,165 | ★ 4.81 |
| 5 | Lakecation Vacations | 97 | 1,574 | ★ 4.41 |
What Kind of STR Should I Buy in Rocky Mount?
Revenue and nightly-rate breakdowns by bedroom count, property tier, and dwelling type for Rocky Mount 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 | 19.2% |
| vrbo | 18.4% |
| both | 62.3% |
Home Value Trends (Rocky Mount)
Typical home values, median sale prices, and the 10-year price trend for Rocky Mount 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 Rocky Mount — 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
Rocky Mount is an unincorporated community in Morgan County, Missouri, so there is no city-level short-term rental ordinance governing it. Missouri has no statewide STR licensing regime, leaving regulation to counties and municipalities, and Morgan County has no dedicated STR permit or registration ordinance for this area. Operators must register with the Missouri Department of Revenue for a sales tax license and collect and remit state and local sales taxes on lodging.
A significant recent change: on June 25, 2024, the Missouri Supreme Court struck down the statutory scheme (sections 67.1170 through 67.1180) that had created tri-county Lake of the Ozarks area lodging taxes across Camden, Miller, and Morgan counties, ruling it unconstitutional because it directed public tax revenue to a private organization, and ordered collection stopped immediately. That tax had generated over $2 million a year for regional tourism promotion. As of 2026, the county lodging tax has not been reinstated, so only standard state and local sales taxes on lodging currently apply.
There is no owner-occupancy or primary-residence requirement and no annual night cap. Short-term rentals in the county are generally allowed and reportedly concentrated in Agricultural Residential and Lake Residential zones, consistent with the area’s vacation-home and lakefront-cabin market. Enforcement is light and tax-focused rather than permit-based.
Market Comparison
Rocky Mount’s 56.06% occupancy in June 2026 runs close to the roughly 55% occupancy typical of the broader U.S. short-term rental market, while its $400.89 ADR runs well above the national median of roughly $220, giving this market strong per-night pricing power at a fairly average fill rate.
Property manager data for this area is tracked at a shared regional level rather than uniquely for Rocky Mount, so this profile omits naming specific operators here.
What distinguishes Rocky Mount in this pipeline is the combination of a genuinely reduced regulatory tax burden (the 2024 court-ordered elimination of the county lodging tax) with one of the most extreme seasonal swings seen in this dataset, a roughly 4.4x gap between July and December revenue, meaning the summer window carries disproportionate weight for annual returns here.
Frequently Asked Questions About Rocky Mount, Missouri
What is the average nightly rate for a short-term rental in the Rocky Mount, MO area?
Do I need a permit to operate a short-term rental in Rocky Mount, MO?
What happened to the Lake of the Ozarks lodging tax?
What is the strongest month for short-term rentals near Rocky Mount, MO?
What is the typical home value in the Rocky Mount, MO area?
How seasonal is the short-term rental market near Rocky Mount, MO?
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