Port Arthur, Texas Short-Term Rental Market
Port Arthur, TX's STR performance feed is part of a shared, ~41-city statewide Texas series, not town-specific data.
Quick Answer: Port Arthur, Texas is an active short-term rental market. average occupancy in the Texas East Area market area is 53%. average monthly revenue in the Texas East Area market area is $3,860. average daily rate in the Texas East Area market area is $271. the top operator in the Texas East Area market area is Evolve with 772 listings. market score is 63/100 (grade C).
Market data reflects the Texas East Area regional market, which includes Port Arthur. Regulations, taxes, and permit details below are specific to Port Arthur.
Market Score Breakdown
Five dimensions StaySTRA evaluates per market.
Market Overview
Port Arthur is a Gulf Coast city in Jefferson County, Southeast Texas, with a population of 55,799, marketed for Cajun cuisine, outdoor recreation, and birding and fishing rather than mass tourism. Draws include the Museum of the Gulf Coast (a Music Hall of Fame with Janis Joplin and Big Bopper artifacts), Pleasure Island, Sabine Pass Battleground, Sea Rim State Park, and nearby wildlife refuges popular with anglers and birders.
Important data note: the STR performance figures StaySTRA has for this area (ADR, occupancy, revenue, seasonal pattern, and revenue by tier) are not Port Arthur-specific. StaySTRA tracks them as a single shared series spanning a roughly 41-area cluster across the entire state of Texas, stretching from Texarkana to Laredo. That is a statewide dataset, not a coherent regional submarket, so the numbers below should be read as a broad Texas STR benchmark rather than a measurement of Port Arthur’s own market.
With that caveat, the shared series posted an average daily rate of $271.39 and 52.57% occupancy in June 2026, with average revenue per listing of about $3,859.60. Year over year, the tracked series is roughly flat: revenue up 0.81% and occupancy up 2.80%, even as ADR is down 6.67%.
Seasonal Patterns
| Month | Occupancy |
|---|---|
| Jan | 33% |
| Feb | 41% |
| Mar | 50% |
| Apr | 41% |
| May | 44% |
| Jun | 53% |
| Jul | 53% |
| Aug | 42% |
| Sep | 39% |
| Oct | 42% |
| Nov | 41% |
| Dec | 37% |
Month-by-month nightly rates and revenue figures for Port Arthur are available to StaySTRA Pro members. Unlock with StaySTRA Pro or analyze a specific address free.
Top Short-Term Rental Operators in Texas East Area market area
Ranked by total active listings. Useful for understanding the competitive landscape. Operator data is published for the Texas East Area market as a whole, which includes Port Arthur, so these counts are not Port Arthur-only figures.
| # | Operator | Listings | Reviews | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evolve | 772 | 27,488 | ★ 4.72 |
| 2 | Vacasa | 225 | 8,425 | ★ 4.68 |
| 3 | FCR Partners, LP | 103 | 172 | ★ 4.68 |
| 4 | Neal’s Lodges | 97 | 170 | ★ 4.79 |
| 5 | 979 Vacation Property Services | 96 | 3,212 | ★ 4.60 |
What Kind of STR Should I Buy in Port Arthur?
Revenue and nightly-rate breakdowns by bedroom count, property tier, and dwelling type for Port Arthur 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 | 46.5% |
| vrbo | 10.1% |
| both | 43.4% |
Home Value Trends (Port Arthur)
Typical home values, median sale prices, and the 10-year price trend for Port Arthur 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 Port Arthur — 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
Port Arthur formally regulates short-term rentals under Ordinance PO 7302, approved by City Council on January 14, 2025, which added Chapter 22, Article XIII to the City Code. This is the city’s first formal STR regulatory framework. Operators must register and obtain a city permit, verify that the property’s zoning district allows the use with the Planning and Zoning Division, and meet minimum standards of conduct.
Operators must collect and remit the city’s 7.0% local hotel occupancy tax on top of the 6% Texas state hotel occupancy tax, for roughly 13% combined. Registration runs through an online portal, with the program’s implementation and enforcement targeted to begin May 1, 2025. There is no owner-occupancy or primary-residence requirement and no annual night cap identified in available sources. Enforcement relies on listing-detection and compliance-monitoring software, code enforcement, and a public hotline for reporting non-compliant properties, with an emphasis on registration and tax remittance. Exact permit application fees and the renewal cycle were not published; prospective hosts should confirm current fees directly with the city. Because the program only recently launched, investors should treat details as evolving and verify current requirements with Planning and Zoning before purchasing. Enforcement is rated moderate.
Market Comparison
The $271.39 ADR and 52.57% occupancy cited for this market come from the same shared, ~41-area statewide Texas series described above, not from Port Arthur specifically. Within that broader dataset, the ADR runs above the roughly $220 national median ADR (about 23% higher), while occupancy sits slightly below the commonly cited US short-term rental median of about 55%.
That combination, above-median rate paired with slightly below-median occupancy, is a pattern seen broadly across this statewide Texas dataset rather than a signal specific to Port Arthur’s own demand, so it should be read as a regional benchmark rather than a competitive read on Port Arthur against other individual markets. Port Arthur’s genuinely local differentiators, its new STR ordinance (adopted January 2025), Gulf Coast attractions, and its low typical home value, are better indicators of the city’s own investment case than the shared performance numbers above.
Property-manager-level data for this market is tracked at a shared regional level rather than uniquely for Port Arthur, so this profile omits it.
Frequently Asked Questions About Port Arthur, Texas
What is the average daily rate for short-term rentals in Port Arthur, TX?
What is the short-term rental occupancy rate in Port Arthur?
Are short-term rentals legal in Port Arthur, Texas?
What is the best month to operate a short-term rental in Port Arthur?
How new is Port Arthur's short-term rental regulation?
What does a typical home cost in the Port Arthur short-term rental market?
Why does Port Arthur's STR performance data look identical to other Texas markets?
Analyze Port Arthur Rentals
Use our free calculator to estimate Airbnb revenue for any property in Port Arthur.
Free Port Arthur STR Calculator →
