Seattle Condo Buildings That Allow Airbnb and Short-Term Rentals

Most Seattle condo buildings do not allow short-term rentals, and the reason is almost always the same. Boards worry about liability, and owners get tired of strangers rolling suitcases through the lobby at 11pm calling the building a hotel. A handful of buildings allow it anyway, usually with a rental cap, a minimum stay, or a fee attached, and I keep a running list because I get asked about this constantly by buyers who want a condo that can also generate income.

Two things before you get to the list. First, this is exactly the kind of rule that changes. Boards vote to tighten or loosen rental caps, buildings hit their cap and stop accepting new short-term rental owners, and fees get adjusted. I re-verify this list, but if it has been more than a few months since the last-updated date above, treat every entry as a starting point, not a guarantee, and call me or the building’s HOA management company before you write an offer assuming rental income.

Second, a building allowing it in its bylaws does not mean the City of Seattle allows it. To run a short-term rental in Seattle you need two licenses: a Seattle business license tax certificate and a short-term rental operator’s regulatory license (about $75 per unit per year). The city also caps most operators at two units total, your primary residence plus one additional unit you do not live in, unless a unit qualifies for a legacy exception for rentals operating before September 30, 2017. In practice, a pure investment condo you plan to rent nightly usually only pencils out if it is your one allowed secondary unit. The building’s HOA rules and the city’s licensing rules are two separate hurdles, and you need to clear both. Rules change, so confirm the current requirements with the City of Seattle before you rely on them.

Seattle Condo Buildings That Currently Allow Short-Term Rentals

Building	Neighborhood	Address	Terms (verify current)	Profile
Austin Bell	Belltown	2326 1st Ave	No rental cap; $250 fee	Austin Bell profile
Belltown Court	Belltown	2415 2nd Ave	No rental cap	Belltown Court profile
Braeburn	Capitol Hill	1410 E Pine St	No rental cap	Braeburn profile
Elektra	First Hill	1400 Hubbell Pl	No rental cap; 3-night minimum	Elektra profile
The Melrose	Capitol Hill	1708 Melrose Ave	No rental cap (STR permitted)	The Melrose profile
Montreux	Belltown	425 Vine St	No rental cap; $50 fee, background check	Montreux profile
Newmark Tower	Downtown	1415 2nd Ave	No rental cap; $50 fee, background check, 7-night min	Newmark Tower profile
Pike Lofts	Capitol Hill	303 E Pike St	No rental cap; $800 move-in fee, lease required	Pike Lofts profile
Seaboard	Downtown	1500 4th Ave	No rental cap	Seaboard profile
Wallingford 45	Wallingford	1601 N 45th St	No rental cap	Wallingford 45 profile
Waterfront Landings	Waterfront	1950 Alaskan Way	No rental cap; $100 fee, background check	Waterfront Landings profile
The Court (215 17th Ave E)	Capitol Hill	215 17th Ave E	No rental cap	The Court profile
2727 Franklin Ave E	Eastlake	2727 Franklin Ave E	No rental cap	2727 Franklin profile
750 on the Hill	Capitol Hill	750 11th Ave E	No rent cap (short & long term)	750 on the Hill profile
Elliott Bay Condominiums	Queen Anne	524 6th Ave W	No rental cap	Elliott Bay profile
Fifth Avenue Court	Belltown	2132 5th Ave	No rental cap	Fifth Avenue Court profile

Monthly HOA dues, where our building profiles have them on record: Newmark Tower runs about $700 to $1,600, Seaboard about $700 to $1,500, and Waterfront Landings about $600 to $1,400, depending on unit size. Dues at the other buildings are not yet verified in our database, so ask before you budget around them. These are ordinary monthly HOA dues and are separate from the one-time short-term-rental fees in the table above.

What “Allows Short-Term Rentals” Actually Means

Every building on this list handles it differently, and the details matter more than the yes or no:

A rental cap means only a set percentage of units in the building can be rented out at any time, short-term or long-term. Older Seattle buildings often cap rentals somewhere between 20 and 40 percent. Hit the cap and you are on a waitlist until another owner’s rental status opens up, so ask where the building currently sits against its cap, not just whether one exists.

A minimum stay requirement (Elektra’s three nights, Newmark’s seven) caps how short “short-term” can actually be. Some buildings, especially newer construction, impose a 30-day minimum, which is not really an Airbnb play, it is closer to furnished corporate housing.

Fees and background checks (Austin Bell, Montreux, Newmark, Waterfront Landings) are usually one-time or per-tenancy charges the board uses to vet who is staying in the building, not a recurring cost on top of your HOA dues.

How to Verify Before You Write an Offer

Before you get attached to a unit because of this list, do three things. Pull the current rules directly from the HOA’s resale certificate, which will state the rental policy in writing as of the day it is issued. Call the building’s HOA management company and ask specifically about short-term or nightly rentals, since some boards distinguish that from standard long-term leasing even when their bylaws are vague. And confirm the unit itself would qualify for a City of Seattle STR operator license, since the building allowing it and the city licensing it are separate questions.

I do this check for every client looking at one of these buildings, and I would rather tell you a building dropped off this list than have you find out after closing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you Airbnb a condo in Seattle? Only in specific buildings whose HOA bylaws permit short-term rentals, and only if the unit qualifies for a City of Seattle short-term rental operator license. Most Seattle condo buildings prohibit short-term rentals outright. The buildings on this page are the exceptions, not the rule.

Which Seattle condo buildings currently allow short-term rentals? As of the last-updated date above, buildings including Austin Bell, Belltown Court, Braeburn, Elektra, Montreux, Newmark Tower, Pike Lofts, Seaboard, Wallingford 45, and Waterfront Landings allow some form of short-term or nightly rental, each with its own fee, minimum stay, or rental cap. Rules change, so confirm current status directly with the building before buying.

What does a rental cap mean in a Seattle condo building? A rental cap limits the percentage of units in a building that can be rented out (short-term or long-term) at any given time. If a building is at its cap, new owners often go on a waitlist before they can legally rent their unit.

Is buying a Seattle condo for Airbnb income a good investment? It depends on the building’s rental cap headroom, the HOA fee relative to expected nightly rates, and whether the unit qualifies for a City of Seattle STR license. It can work well in the right building, and it can also tie up capital in a unit you cannot legally rent the way you planned. Run the numbers with someone who knows the building, not just the neighborhood.

How do I confirm a building’s short-term rental policy before making an offer? Request the HOA’s resale certificate, which states current rental policy in writing, and call the HOA management company directly to ask about short-term or nightly rentals specifically. Do not rely on a blog post, including this one, without that direct confirmation.

Do these buildings allow Airbnb specifically, or just any short-term rental platform? Bylaws typically govern rental duration and frequency, not the specific platform, so a building that allows short-term rentals generally allows Airbnb, VRBO, or a direct booking the same way. The city license requirement applies regardless of platform.

Buying a Seattle condo for short-term rental income? Let’s talk through which of these buildings actually pencils out for your numbers. I’ll pull the current rental status, HOA fee, and cap headroom before you write an offer, not after.

---

Originally published on UrbanCondoSpaces.com. Preserved in the Seattle Condo Authority archive by Jeff Reynolds.