GPSTBID for Short-term Vacation Rentals in Riverside County

The annual assessment rate is a percentage (3% for hotels; 1% for vacation rental properties) of gross short-term rental revenue, calculated monthly in the same way you calculate and remit TOT. Assessments will not be collected on long-term stays of 28 days or more.

The fee is typically passed on to the overnight guest via their nightly rental bill. Travelers in the U.S. have become accustomed to these destination fees, which are standard practice across the country.

All lodging businesses with 50 rooms or more and vacation rentals located within the boundaries of the cities of Desert Hot Springs, Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, La Quinta and Indio, as well as portions of the unincorporated area of Riverside County in the Coachella Valley.

Vacation rentals should begin assessing stays July 1, 2021. Assessments for each month are due by the end of the following month to avoid penalties or late fees.

The TBID assessment is calculated as 1% of gross rental revenue on short term stays of less than 28 day, remitted each month in the same way you calculate and remit Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT).

The GPSTBID assessment will be remitted by the City (or County for some) that you pay TOT to. An additional line for GPSTBID collection will be added to the forms or platforms you use to remit TOT.

Please note, if you use Airbnb for bookings and your property is located in Desert Hot Springs, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indio or the unincorporated areas of Riverside County within the GPSTBID boundaries, Airbnb will NOT remit the GPSTBID for you the way they remit TOT. You have a couple different options for collecting and remitting the TBID. Details and instructions for how to set up your account in Airbnb to collect the TBID, in addition to your TOT, are available on their website HERE. 

If you do not wish to add the TBID as a pass-through to the guest, you will simply pay the TBID directly to the city/county on the Airbnb exemptions form that you file.  

The renewed TBID will have a 10-year life, beginning July 1, 2021 and ending June 30, 2031.

Visit Greater Palm Springs will begin loading in vacation rental owner information received from each of our eight cities and Riverside County for permitted homes within our boundaries in the spring of 2021. Once your information is loaded in, an email will be sent to you, or your property manager, with information about how to log in and access your account.

Local vacation rental agents and owners asked Visit GPS to begin the process of becoming a part of the TBID several years ago. With the renewal of the GPS TBID that started in 2020, all vacation rental permit holders within our boundaries were mailed petitions. With petitions representing over 73% of the district returned in favor of renewing the GPS TBID including vacation rentals, they successfully petitioned to be included.

Vacation rentals are key for our destination to help meet visitor demand during our busiest times of the year, and having them be part of our Board of Directors benefits all of us. The funds collected from vacation rentals for the TBID will be used specifically for marketing and destination development programs designed to bring in more visitors—with a special focus on educating homeowners, neighbors and guests in order to create a positive environment in the local community and improve the vacation rental guest experience.

A Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) is a collection of lodging properties that pay an assessment on individual room night stays. The assessment—a small fee usually paid by guests on their nightly bill—provides funding for destination marketing and development to grow visitation year-round and help the destination remain competitive worldwide.

Over 160 tourism improvement districts exist across the United States, with the majority being in California, including San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Big Bear Lake, Napa Valley, Huntington Beach, Oceanside and Temecula.

The Greater Palm Springs TBID helps us compete with these destinations and promote our many wonderful activities, events, attractions and unique places to stay to visitors around the world.

The TBID provides a stable, long-term funding source to promote tourism, our region’s No. 1 industry. Increasing visitation and room night sales ultimately benefits our hotel/vacation rental businesses and helps grow the local economy. Unlike Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) collections, which can be used for a variety of purposes, TBID funds are protected for exclusive use by the destination marketing organization (in this case, Visit Greater Palm Springs). The Greater Palm Springs TBID represents 83.7% of Visit GPS' total annual funding.

For homes located in the City of Palm Springs, Click here to download a step-by-step guide on how to set up your TOT + TBID on Airbnb & VRBO.

For all other properties, click here for instructions from Airbnb.