Spicewood, Texas

Spicewood is an unincorporated Texas Hill Country community with no city government of its own, sitting across unincorporated portions of Burnet, Travis, and Blanco counties. Because there is no municipality, there are no city STR ordinances, permits, or licenses. Texas counties have very limited statutory authority to regulate short-term rentals in unincorporated areas, and none of the three counties currently operate an STR permit or registration program covering Spicewood. In practice this means an STR owner does not need a local permit and faces no local caps on nights, occupancy, or owner-occupancy. This is meaningfully different from the City of Austin’s own STR regulations, which apply only within Austin’s city limits, not to unincorporated Spicewood. The one firm government obligation is tax: Texas levies a 6% state hotel occupancy tax on stays under 30 days, which owners must register for with the Texas Comptroller and remit; Airbnb and Vrbo collect the state portion automatically for most listings. Travis County does not add a separate county hotel occupancy tax. The most important due-diligence item for investors is private restrictions: many Spicewood-area subdivisions and lake communities carry deed restrictions or HOA covenants that can prohibit or limit short-term rentals, enforced by the HOA rather than government. Enforcement at the government level is classified as minimal.