About & methodology
How the rules get here.
Rental Rulebook is an independent research database run by a small editorial team. We aren't a city government, a booking platform, a property manager or a law firm. We compile short-term rental rules from official sources, link every rule to where it came from, date everything, and watch for changes.
Method
Four rules we hold ourselves to
| Official sources only | Municipal code, city permit pages, council records, state law and state tax guidance We read the rules where the government publishes them. Blogs and forums are never used. A platform's own help pages are cited only for what that platform does, such as which taxes it collects. |
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| Every rule cites its source | Numbered citations link each rule to the exact document it came from Each page lists its sources with the date the source was last updated and the date we read it. If a source doesn't say something, we say so rather than guess. |
| Draft, then verified | Pages are marked Draft until every rule has been checked line by line Research is assisted by software that reads and compares documents. A person then checks each rule against its cited source before a page loses its Draft label. Software is never the final word on what a rule says. |
| Watching for changes | Rule pages, council agendas and state legislation, not just the city's summary page Rules usually change in a council agenda or a state bill long before a city updates its website. We watch where changes start, record what we checked and when, and show it in each page's Changes section. |
Monitoring
How we watch for changes
| Sources we monitor | Municipal code, the city's STR department pages, city council and planning commission agendas, the state legislature, and state tax and regulatory agencies Each market's Sources section lists exactly which documents we watch. Rules usually change in a council agenda or a state bill months before the city updates its website, so we watch where changes start, not just the summary page. |
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| How often | Council and legislative agendas weekly; rule pages and code weekly by software; every market re-read by a person at least monthly Some sources can't be read automatically (Municode renders with JavaScript; some state sites block automated access). Those are checked by hand and the page's Changes section says what was checked and when. |
| Proposed vs. enacted | A change is "proposed" when it appears on an agenda or is filed as a bill, "pending" once passed but not yet in effect, and "enacted" from its effective date Rule pages show today's rules. Proposed and pending changes appear only in the Changes section, labeled, so a rule that is being debated is never presented as law. |
| Conflicting sources | The most authoritative document wins: adopted code over a summary page, the state over the city where state law preempts When two official sources disagree and we can't resolve it, the field is marked "Confirming" on the page and both sources are cited until the jurisdiction clarifies. |
| Missing information | If no official source states something, the page says so We don't fill gaps from forums, news articles or other cities' rules. "Not stated in the sources we reviewed" is a valid answer and is more useful than a guess. |
Software and people
What AI does here, and what it doesn't
| What software does | Finds documents, extracts candidate rules, compares versions and flags what changed Reading hundreds of council agendas and code sections every week is only practical with software, and comparing a page to last week's copy is something it does better than a person. |
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| What software doesn't do | Decide what a rule means, or publish anything Every rule field is checked by a person against its cited source before a page loses its Draft label, and every change alert is reviewed before it's sent. Software finds; people verify. |
Policies
Independence, corrections and limits
| Independence | No one can pay to change how a rule or a market is described If we ever include affiliate links or sponsored listings, they will be clearly labeled and kept separate from the rule data. |
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| Corrections | Found something wrong or out of date? Email hello@rentalrulebook.com Include the page and, if you can, a link to the official source. We review every report, correct confirmed errors quickly, and note significant corrections in the page's Changes section. |
| Not legal or tax advice | General information to help you ask the right questions Rules differ by zone, property and circumstance, and HOA rules or deed restrictions can be stricter than city rules. Confirm with the jurisdiction and a qualified professional before you buy or list. |
Contact
Questions, corrections or a market request
We read every message. Property managers working across several cities are especially welcome.
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