Short-Term Rental Rules for Condos in Surfside: What Owners Should Verify

Short-term rental in Surfside is not authorised by «Miami»: it is authorised by the city that address belongs to, and even then the building's rules have to allow it. These are two independent permissions, and without either one you cannot rent.

The sixteen neighbourhoods on this site are spread across nine different cities, each with its own ordinance, its own register and its own website. What is legal one street away may be banned on the next because the city changed, and within the same city it can change with the lot's zoning. On top of that, a city permit does not bind your building's association: the condominium rules are a private contract among owners and can forbid short-term rental even where the city allows it. It is perfectly possible to hold the municipal licence and still be barred from renting by your tower's rules. A buyer counting on short stays needs both answers in writing before making an offer, because without either one the whole business model disappears and the fine lands on the owner.

In Surfside you buy by asking the building for paperwork before you ask the unit, and that is what sets it apart along this coast. Structural scrutiny of oceanfront condominium stock is, on this stretch, the most demanding in the county, and the practical consequence is that the building's file outweighs the buyer's: the lender and the carrier want to see inspection history, the reserve study, and the minutes in which the board decided what to repair and how to pay for it, before they look at the solvency of whoever signs. For someone who cannot show up in person that means two separate, mandatory counterparts: the manager or the board, which holds the minutes, the budget and the assessments already voted, and the town counter, which keeps the recertification file and any open correction orders. Ask the manager which assessments are approved and which are still under study; ask the town whether there are open files on that address; ask your closing attorney what the estoppel says about debts and pending approvals; and ask the lender what it requires from the building, not from you, in order to approve.

What is specific to Surfside

What to verify, step by step

1. Identify first which city the exact address belongs to, not the neighbourhood name, and go to that city's website: the regime and the register are its own, not the county's.
2. Ask the city office whether that address may be rented short-term, what register or licence it requires and whether the lot's zoning permits it; ask for the answer in writing.
3. Separately, ask the association for the leasing article of the rules and its amendments, and look for the minimum lease term and how many times a year leasing is allowed.
4. Treat the two answers as cumulative requirements: you may rent only if the city authorises it and the rules do as well. Either one alone is not enough.
5. Ask the association what penalty applies to an owner who rents without authorisation, and ask to see the cases recorded in the minutes.
6. Check with a Florida-licensed attorney and an accountant the lodging and sales taxes that come with this kind of rental, before you buy.

Mistakes that cost money

• Believing there is a single «Miami» rule for short-term rental. There is not: there is one rule per city, and this site's neighbourhoods sit in nine different cities.
• Obtaining the city permit and assuming you can now rent. The building's rules are the second permission and they can refuse it.
• Buying on the strength of a listing that says «short-term rental allowed», without the city ordinance and the condominium rules in writing.

Frequently asked questions

I have the city permit. Can I rent by the night now?

Not yet. The city permit answers only for the city. The condominium rules must also allow it, and those rules are a private contract among owners that the city does not amend.

The building's rules allow it. Is that enough?

Also no. The building cannot authorise what your city's ordinance forbids. You need both permissions, and it is worth having both in writing before closing.

Why can my neighbour in another area do it and I cannot?

Because they are probably in a different city, with a different ordinance and a different register. Always check on the website of the city your address belongs to.

What happens if I rent without both authorisations?

You expose yourself to a city penalty and to an association penalty separately. Ask each one what applies before you start, not after the first guest.

Where to check it

• Florida DBPR, Division of Condominiums — state rules on condominiums and associations
• Miami-Dade Clerk of the Courts — deeds, liens, encumbrances and litigation on the property
• Florida DBPR — whether a broker, appraiser or contractor holds a current licence
• Internal Revenue Service — the non-resident owner's federal tax obligations
• Town of Surfside — the rules of the municipality Surfside belongs to

Official bodies. Specific figures are requested there, not copied from a listing.

Updated 2026-11-06