Indiana HEA 1210 and Rental Permit Fees

Indiana HEA 1210 limits local regulation of short term rentals in the ways the statute specifies, including barring local rental count caps, and it caps permit fees at $150, as checked on 26 October 2026. The direct answer for an Indiana host is that a city rule imposing a rental count cap, or a permit fee above the cap, should be tested against HEA 1210, while other local rules, such as safety, tax and nuisance rules that the statute preserves, remain enforceable. The fee cap and the count cap bar are specific provisions, not a general deregulation.

This guide describes HEA 1210 at a general level and does not interpret its current text for any city. Hosts should read the current statute text and seek qualified Indiana legal advice, because the statute's scope, its preserved powers and city conformity all affect whether a particular city rule survives.

A rental count cap, at a general level, limits the number of short term rentals in a city, a district or a building, and HEA 1210 bars local rental count caps in the manner the statute specifies. Hosts in Indiana should therefore be sceptical of a city or building cap that purports to limit numbers, while distinguishing a city cap, which the statute addresses, from a private building cap in a condominium or association document, which the statute may not address in the same way. The source of the cap, city or building, matters to its validity.

Hosts should also distinguish a count cap from other numeric limits the statute may preserve, such as a guest capacity limit based on safety, a night limit, or a parking requirement, because a numeric limit is not automatically a rental count cap. The statute's definition of the barred cap, and any exception for safety or other preserved purposes, decides whether a particular numeric rule is barred or preserved, and hosts should read that definition rather than assuming every number is a cap.

HEA 1210 caps permit fees at $150, as checked on 26 October 2026, which means a local permit fee for short term renting above that figure should be tested against the statute, while a fee at or below the figure may be lawful if the permit scheme itself is otherwise valid. Hosts should check what the fee covers, whether it is per property, per host or per year, and whether additional charges, such as inspection fees, application fees or renewal fees, are treated as part of the permit fee or as separate charges under the statute. Fee structure, not just the headline figure, decides compliance.

A fee above the cap does not automatically entitle a host to ignore the permit scheme entirely; the host may still need to register or hold a permit, with the fee question resolved through the proper route, such as a city correction, a challenge or legal advice. Hosts who refuse to pay any fee because the fee exceeds the cap risk operating without a required permit, which is a separate breach. The fee dispute and the permit duty should be handled as separate questions.

Preserved local rules in Indiana, as in other preemption states, commonly include safety, nuisance, tax and general police powers, and hosts should expect to comply with those rules even where a count cap or an excessive fee is barred. A host who treats HEA 1210 as an exemption from fire safety, noise or tax duties misunderstands preemption and risks enforcement under preserved rules. The statute narrows local power, it does not remove local government.

Hosts should list preserved rules for their city by type, as described in the pillar guide, and should comply with each preserved rule while testing any barred rule through proper channels. That dual approach, comply with the preserved, challenge the barred, is the practical way to operate in a preemption state without either surrendering a statutory protection or breaching a valid local rule.

Indiana cities have responded to HEA 1210 by conforming permit schemes, adjusting fees and revising caps, but conformity is city specific and may lag the statute, particularly where a city code has not been amended since the statute took effect. Hosts should check the current city code and the current fee schedule, not a code version from before the statute, and should confirm the fee in writing from the permitting office where the published schedule is unclear.

Fee disputes should be raised promptly, in writing, citing the statute and the fee charged, and hosts should keep the correspondence with the permit file. A host who pays an excessive fee under protest, while raising the dispute, preserves both the permit and the dispute, while a host who refuses to pay may lose the permit while the dispute continues. Payment under protest, where the system allows it, is often the safer course, with advice.

Read the current HEA 1210 text, including the count cap bar, the $150 fee cap and preserved powers, the current city code and fee schedule for the address, and record dates and sources. Seek qualified Indiana legal advice where a city rule's validity or a fee's treatment is unclear.

This guide is general information only, not legal advice for any host, city or property in Indiana. Preemption analysis is text and fact specific, and one city's position must never be treated as a general Indiana position. Before acting, verify the position with the official municipal code or registration portal and the state law source for that address.