Fort Walton Beach

Operating rules

Primary residence

—

Min stay (nights)

—

Max nights / year

—

Max occupancy

Ordinance 2181 (COO Sec. 8.13), for STRs in the R-1, R1E, or R2 zoning districts, limits maximum overnight occupancy to the lesser of: (a) two persons per bedroom plus four additional persons; or (b) 24 persons total per short-term vacation rental (capped at 24 per platted lot). Parking must be provided at one space per 2.5 occupants. These caps are unenforceable during the moratorium (through July 27, 2026). NOTE: an earlier draft listed a 'one person per 150 sq ft of heated space' option — that option does NOT appear in the enacted ordinance text and has been removed.

Zoning-restricted

Yes

Cap on licenses

—

Grandfathering: Ordinance 2181 Section 8.13.16 exempts pre-existing short-term vacation rental agreements as of the ordinance effective date for one year (advertising must be compliant within 120 days); Section 8.13.17 additionally allows owners with a pending development order or an existing STR use as of the effective date to apply for grandfathered status for five years as to occupancy limitations. Separately, under Fla. Stat. 509.032(7)(b), local ordinances adopted on or before June 1, 2011 are grandfathered from state preemption; Ordinance 2181 (2025) is a new ordinance whose enforceability is currently suspended by moratorium and affected by SB 180. The Okaloosa Island Covenants and Restrictions (B-1 Private Residential Area) predate the 2011 preemption and are grandfathered.

Zoning: Fort Walton Beach Ordinance 2181 STR registration and occupancy rules apply in the R-1, R1E, and R2 districts, but are not currently enforced during the moratorium. Statewide preemption (Fla. Stat. 509.032(7)(b)) bars prohibiting STRs or regulating rental duration/frequency. The Okaloosa Island B-1 Private Residential Area covenant predates the 2011 preemption and is grandfathered; it prohibits residences there from being rented to transients. Okaloosa Island is unincorporated and outside Fort Walton Beach city limits.

• Fla. Stat. 509.032(7)(b): 'A local law, ordinance, or regulation may not prohibit vacation rentals or regulate the duration or frequency of rental of vacation rentals. This paragraph does not apply to any local law, ordinance, or regulation adopted on or before June 1, 2011.'
• City Ordinance 2181 (COO Sec. 8.13) was adopted April 22, 2025 requiring annual registration, a city-issued decal, posted signage, and a responsible party — but enforcement is suspended by Ordinance 2201 ('Enforcement of these requirements shall be held in abeyance until July 27, 2026') due to SB 180 (retroactive from Aug 1, 2024).
• Ordinance 2181 prohibits commercial special events (weddings, retreats, reunions, banquets) in residential zones and charter-bus transport to rentals; also requires safety equipment.
• Per the Okaloosa County one-pager: 'The County has no authority to prohibit STRs except within certain areas of Okaloosa Island.' The Okaloosa Island B-1 covenant 'prohibits residence from being operated as a group or rented to transients.'
• SB 280 (a 2024 statewide STR registry bill) was vetoed by Gov. DeSantis on 2024-06-27 and never took effect. The 2025 SB 180 (signed 2025-06-26) is the operative law now driving the city moratorium.
• State DBPR vacation rental license and Okaloosa County TDT remain required and enforceable regardless of the city moratorium.

Enforcement

Active enforcement

suspended

Fines

City layer: Under Ordinance 2181 Section 8.13, criminal penalties provide that 'A violation of this article shall be punishable as a misdemeanor by a fine of up to five hundred dollars ($500.00) per violation and a definite term of imprisonment of not more than sixty (60) days as provided in F.S. § 162.22' — but these penalties are UNENFORCEABLE during the moratorium (through July 27, 2026). County layer: TDT delinquency penalties are administered by the Okaloosa Clerk of Court; the Clerk's TDT page (okaloosaclerk.com) was unreachable (HTTP 403) on last check, so the specific penalty schedule could not be confirmed firsthand and is treated as unconfirmed. Enforcement of STR rules is currently primarily at the state (DBPR) level; the county also warns that non-primary-residence use may violate homestead-exemption rules.

Notes

Enforcement of the City STR ordinance (Section 8.13) is held in abeyance under Ordinance 2201 following SB 180 (signed 2025-06-26, retroactive from 2024-08-01) and ongoing litigation over the constitutionality of SB 180. State DBPR licensing and county TDT remain in effect and enforceable. The Okaloosa County STR page also states: 'If the owner is not permanently residing in the dwelling or it is a rental, vacation home, or vacant, the property owner could be in violation of the homestead exemption regulations and could possibly be subject to multiple years of property taxes as determined by the Property Appraiser's Office.' A prior draft's enforcement quote ('Failure to comply with short-term rental licensing requirements may result in additional fees, penalties, and/or a lien on your short-term rental property.') could NOT be located on any official Okaloosa County or City page and was removed as unsupported.