Grand Lake raises fees on nightly rental licenses
The Grand Lake Board of Trustees approved an increase on fees and deposits for a variety of services and licenses beginning in 2025. These changes will impact anyone needing a nightly rental license, including short-term rentals.
The trustees have the ability to update the town’s fees to cover the direct and indirect costs of administering a service or to offset the impacts of a service, according to municipal code.
The nightly rental application fee, which is a one-time fee due when property owners apply for a nightly rental license, remains the same as 2024 at $165 per application. Nightly rental license fees, however, have increased based on occupancy.
Previously, the nightly rental license fee for a residence with an eight-person occupancy was $900. In 2025, the fee for the same occupancy has increased 22% to $1,100. The town has also added a new tier for residences with an occupancy of 11 or more.
A nightly rental license must be renewed each year to be able to rent on a short-term basis in Grand Lake, according to town Treasurer Heike Fawkes.
Fawkes said nightly rental income is deposited into the town’s general fund, with the net annual amount put into the town’s attainable housing fund. Revenue from licenses also covers expenses like program advertising, the nightly rental licensing program, and administrative and code enforcement costs related to licensing and compliance.
In 2024, the town collected an estimated $84,000 from nightly rental licenses, and that number is expected to increase in 2025 as a result of the fee change.
- 1-3 occupancy: $700 per license
- 4-6 occupancy: $900 per license
- 7-10 occupancy: $1,100 per license
- 11-plus occupancy: $2,000 per license

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