Where you can still get a short-term rental permit
Washington's resort markets are not equally open. Some are capped and already over the line; one or two still have real room. Here is the permit position in each market we manage, checked at the source and dated.
Washington's Short-Term Rental Act (RCW 64.37) sets the floor everywhere in the state: operators carry liability insurance, post required safety information, and remit lodging taxes. A standard homeowner's policy does not satisfy it.
Lake Chelan
Unincorporated Chelan had 63 of its 127 permits in use as of the county's 11 August 2026 count — 64 still available, the largest opening left in the county.
Chelan County (unincorporated) · about 2.5 hours from Kennewick
Desert Aire & Crescent Bar
Grant County allows short-term rentals in unincorporated areas only with a conditional use permit — this is a land-use hearing, not a form you file.
Grant County (unincorporated) · about 1 hour from Kennewick
Ocean Shores
Ocean Shores permits short-term rentals only in commercial zoning districts — which rules out most of the residential beach houses owners assume they can rent nightly.
City of Ocean Shores · about 5 hours from Kennewick
Port Townsend & Jefferson County
Jefferson County caps permittable short-term rentals at 4% of housing stock, allocated proportionally by zip code — so availability depends on which zip code your property sits in, not on the county as a whole.
Jefferson County · about 5.5 hours from Kennewick
Whidbey Island
Island County has no dedicated short-term rental ordinance yet and permits them through zoning and land use instead — but a county STR permit programme was in active development as of May 2026, so today's rules are not the rules you will operate under.
Island County · about 5.5 hours from Kennewick
Long Beach Peninsula
Whether you can rent nightly on the Long Beach Peninsula is decided by your zone: some zones permit it outright, some only conditionally, and some prohibit it entirely. Confirm the zoning before you make an offer.
Pacific County / City of Long Beach · about 5.5 hours from Kennewick
Westport
Westport requires a local representative available 24 hours a day before it will issue a permit — the single requirement that decides whether an out-of-area owner can operate here at all.
City of Westport · about 5 hours from Kennewick
Leavenworth & Plain
Unincorporated Leavenworth is over its cap — 109 permits against 105 allowed — and Plain is over by 4. Lake Wenatchee is over by 53. No new permits are being created in any of the three.
Chelan County (unincorporated) · about 3 hours from Kennewick
San Juan Islands
San Juan County is not accepting new vacation rental applications. Hard per-island caps have been in place since May 2022, and Shaw and Waldron prohibit vacation rentals entirely.
San Juan County · ferry-dependent; a full day from Kennewick
Not sure where your property stands?
Send the address. We will come back with the permit position in that jurisdiction and a realistic revenue range.