Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin

Short-term rentals are legal in Wisconsin Dells but layered under both state and local rules. At the state level, any operator renting for fewer than 30 days must hold a Tourist Rooming House (TRH) license from Wisconsin DATCP, which costs about $110 annually plus a one-time pre-inspection fee of roughly $300, and requires passing a health and safety inspection.

Locally, operators must register with the City Clerk, collect and remit taxes, and, per multiple STR-guide sources, may need a city overnight lodging license and, in certain zoning districts, a conditional-use permit from the Planning Commission (roughly $250). Lodging in the Dells/Lake Delton area carries roughly 12.25% total tax: 5.0% state sales tax, 0.5% county sales tax, 1.25% premier resort area tax, and a 5.5% city room tax, with 90% of room-tax proceeds funding the Wisconsin Dells Visitor & Convention Bureau.

Wisconsin’s 2017 ‘Right to Rent’ law (Wis. Stat. 66.1014) bars municipalities from banning short-term rentals of residential dwellings and limits how far local rules can go; a municipality may cap 6-to-29-day rentals at 180 days per year but cannot require a property to be an owner’s primary residence. Investors should confirm current city licensing and zoning directly with the City Clerk, since owner-occupancy or primary-residence claims circulating in some STR guides are likely preempted by state law. Enforcement is rated moderate.