Sandusky, Ohio Short-Term Rental Market
Sandusky, OH short-term rentals averaged $236/night at 62.6% occupancy in June 2026, capped at 99 city permits.
Quick Answer: Sandusky, Ohio is an active short-term rental market. average occupancy is 63%. average monthly revenue is $3,966. average daily rate is $236. the top operator is Evolve with 317 listings. market score is 85/100 (grade B).
Market data reflects the Ohio Area regional market, which includes Sandusky. Regulations, taxes, and permit details below are specific to Sandusky.
Market Score Breakdown
Five dimensions Apivex evaluates per market.
Market Overview
Sandusky’s short-term rental market posted a $236 average daily rate and 62.6% occupancy in June 2026, generating $3,966 in average monthly revenue per listing. By property type, houses averaged $4,342/month, entire-place listings $4,179/month, and apartments $3,218/month. Year over year, occupancy rose 2.9 percentage points and average revenue rose 6.8%, even as ADR slipped 3.0%, a sign of rising demand volume offsetting softer nightly pricing.
The market carries roughly 11,450-11,470 active listings, the second-largest supply base in this batch. The bedroom mix skews small: 3,589 one-bedroom units (31% of supply), 3,334 two-bedroom, 2,830 three-bedroom, 1,091 four-bedroom, and 610 five-bedroom. Entire-place listings dominate at 10,456 (about 91%), with 1,007 private rooms and 4 shared rooms. Channel data shows 4,608 listings on both Airbnb and Vrbo, 5,903 Airbnb-only, and 956 Vrbo-only.
Sandusky anchors the Shores & Islands Ohio tourism region on Lake Erie, home to Cedar Point amusement park and roughly 5 million estimated annual visitors to the city. Its investability score of 96.79 (out of 100) is the highest in this batch, and its rental demand score of 83.96 and total market score of 84.69 both point to a strong, tourism-anchored market, tempered by a seasonality score of 63.05 reflecting the strongly seasonal May-through-September visitor pattern.
Seasonal Patterns
| Month | Occupancy | ADR | Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40% | $125 | $1,513 |
| Feb | 48% | $129 | $1,519 |
| Mar | 51% | $132 | $1,784 |
| Apr | 51% | $141 | $1,866 |
| May | 53% | $165 | $2,213 |
| Jun | 62% | $203 | $3,289 |
| Jul | 66% | $206 | $3,737 |
| Aug | 59% | $211 | $3,485 |
| Sep | 49% | $172 | $2,318 |
| Oct | 49% | $157 | $2,199 |
| Nov | 48% | $143 | $1,903 |
| Dec | 45% | $136 | $1,753 |
Top Short-Term Rental Operators in Sandusky
Ranked by total active listings. Useful for understanding the competitive landscape.
| # | Operator | Listings | Reviews | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evolve | 317 | 10,621 | ★ 4.61 |
| 2 | Amish Country Lodging | 76 | 8,729 | ★ 4.91 |
| 3 | Island Club Home Rentals | 67 | 5,009 | ★ 4.46 |
| 4 | Ohio Shores Vacation Rentals | 61 | 4,052 | ★ 4.70 |
| 5 | Simply Better Property Management | 47 | 1,039 | ★ 4.80 |
What Kind of STR Should I Buy in Sandusky?
Revenue and pricing by property type, tier, and bedroom count.
Revenue by Bedroom Count
| 1 bed | 3,589 |
| 2 bed | 3,334 |
| 3 bed | 2,830 |
| 4 bed | 1,091 |
| 5 bed | 610 |
ADR by Property Tier
| Entire Home | $248 |
| Luxury | $452 |
| Professionally Managed | $368 |
Revenue by Dwelling Type
| Apartment | $3,218 |
| Entire Place | $4,179 |
| House | $4,342 |
Booking Channel Mix
Distribution of bookings across major STR platforms.
| Channel | Share |
|---|---|
| airbnb | 51.5% |
| vrbo | 8.3% |
| both | 40.2% |
Investment Analysis
Sandusky’s typical home value is $151,313, notably the lowest in this batch, with a median list price of $197,300, 93 homes currently for sale, and a median 18 days to pending. Using the average listing’s $3,966 monthly revenue, annualized to $47,596, that computes to a gross yield of roughly 31.5% against the typical home value, the highest calculated in this batch by a wide margin. That figure likely overstates achievable yield for a typical citywide home, since STR-viable properties near Cedar Point and the Lake Erie waterfront, the areas that drive this market’s revenue, generally command a premium over the broader Sandusky housing stock; investors should underwrite against comparable near-attraction listing prices.
Rate tiers show substantial upside: the all-listings ADR of $236 rises to $248 for entire-home-only rentals, $368 for professionally managed listings (56% above the all-listings average), and $452 for the luxury tier (92% above). But entry to that upside is capped by regulation, not just capital: the city limits total transient rental permits to 99 city-wide, with an annual $500 fee (reduced to $200 for an owner-occupied rooming or tourist house), so new operators may face a hard supply ceiling regardless of purchase price. Revenue growth score of 63.85 out of 100 is middling for this batch, consistent with the ADR softness noted above.
Revenue Trend (5 yr)
ADR & Occupancy Trends (5 yr)
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Booking Insights
Sandusky guests book an average of 63.8 days ahead of arrival, a mid-range lead time in this batch, reflecting a mix of planned Cedar Point trips and more flexible regional getaways. That gives owners a roughly 9-week window to adjust pricing as demand signals firm up ahead of the park’s peak season.
Average length of stay is 3.6 nights, on the shorter end of this batch, consistent with a destination built around a 1-3 day amusement-park visit rather than a week-long vacation. Shorter stays mean more frequent turnover, and with it more frequent cleaning and guest-communication costs per booking, but they also mean occupancy gaps are easier to fill incrementally since each booking commits less inventory at a time than in markets with 5+ night average stays.
For operators holding one of the city’s capped 99 transient rental permits, the 63.8-day lead time gives enough runway to run seasonal pricing tests ahead of Cedar Point’s May opening, while the short 3.6-night average stay means listings turn over more frequently per month than longer-stay markets like Sherrills Ford or Mount Pleasant, raising the importance of efficient, low-cost cleaning and turnover logistics to protect net margins.
Short-Term Rental Regulations
Short-term rentals (transient rentals, any dwelling rented for under 30 consecutive days) are legal in Sandusky but tightly controlled. Every dwelling used for transient occupancy must hold an annual Transient Rental Permit from the city’s Code Compliance Division; permits expire December 31 each year and must be renewed. The city caps total permits at 99 citywide, so availability is severely limited regardless of an investor’s capital. The standard annual fee is $500 per dwelling, reduced to $200 for an owner-occupied rooming or tourist house. Permits require a health, fire, and building code inspection before issuance.
There is no owner-occupancy or primary-residence requirement for a standard permit. Location matters: transient rentals are allowed as-of-right only in specified commercial and overlay zones (including a dedicated Transient Rental Overlay district), allowed with a conditional use permit in Local Business zoning, and otherwise prohibited except for legally non-conforming pre-ordinance operators.
Tax obligations combine a 4% Erie County lodging tax with an additional City of Sandusky transient occupancy tax on top. Enforcement is rated strict, using both automated monitoring and manual compliance checks, more intensive than most markets in this batch. The 99-permit cap dates to Ordinance 23-031 (2023), which also moved applications to an online portal and consolidated lodging-tax filing with Erie County into a single form. No maximum-nights-per-year cap was found beyond the permit framework itself.
Market Comparison
At 62.6% occupancy and a $236 ADR, Sandusky runs above the roughly 55% occupancy of typical US short-term rental benchmarks and close to the roughly $220 national median ADR, reflecting steady demand from Cedar Point and the broader Shores & Islands Ohio tourism draw (an estimated 5 million visitors to the city annually). The market’s investability score of 96.79 out of 100, the highest of any market processed in this batch, underscores that read, supported by the region’s low typical home value of $151,313 relative to its revenue potential.
Property management here is led decisively by one national brand: Evolve holds 317 listings, more than 4 times the next-largest operator, Amish Country Lodging (76 listings). The top 5 combined, Evolve, Amish Country Lodging, Island Club Home Rentals, Ohio Shores Vacation Rentals, and Simply Better Property Management, control 568 of the roughly 11,450-11,470 listings, about 5%, meaning most of Sandusky’s STR supply is independently operated despite Evolve’s outsized single-operator share.
Frequently Asked Questions About Sandusky, Ohio
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