In-depth analysis

Should you buy an STR in Saint Augustine in 2026?

Carefully. America’s oldest city is a strong year-round leisure draw — historic charm, beach access, and a steady stream of weekend tourists from Jacksonville, Orlando, and the Southeast. ADR $187 at 61% occupancy works on paper. But Saint Augustine has the most active historic-preservation regime in north Florida, and the city has signaled it will keep tightening STR rules in protected districts. Combine that with Florida’s post-2022 insurance reset and St. Johns County flood-zone exposure and the buy case is “narrow and address-specific,” not “buy anywhere within 10 miles of the fort.”

Regulation: where the city stands

Florida Chapter 509 preempts outright bans, but Saint Augustine has used permitted-use, zoning, and historic-district overlays to materially constrain new STRs:

City of Saint Augustine — STRs allowed by right in some zones, conditional or prohibited in others. The historic district (HP-1, HP-2) has the strictest review.
Architectural Review Board (ARB) — exterior changes to any historic-district property require ARB sign-off. This affects renovation timelines, signage, and even paint color.
St. Johns County (Saint Augustine Beach, Crescent Beach, Vilano) — separate jurisdictions, generally more permissive than the city historic core.
Tourist development tax — collected county-wide; bed-tax remittance required.

Always pull the zoning verification letter on a specific parcel before going hard on earnest money. See the City of Saint Augustine planning department STR rules page.

The market by the numbers

Metric	Saint Augustine	Notes
Avg ADR	$187	History premium
Occupancy	61%	Strong year-round
RevPAR	$114	Solid pre-insurance
Market score	61/100	Regulation drags it down
Saturation tier	B	Mid-density

Submarkets that matter

Old City / Historic District — premium ADR, most regulation, most ARB friction.
Lincolnville / North City — adjacent to historic core, fewer overlays.
Anastasia Island / Saint Augustine Beach — beach-driven leisure, separate jurisdiction, different rule set.
Vilano Beach / North Beach — county jurisdiction, generally permissive, flood-zone heavy.

The 3 mistakes buyers make here

Assuming the historic-district premium is worth the regulatory headache. It can be — but only after you’ve confirmed the specific parcel’s zoning permits STR by right.
Underestimating ARB renovation friction. Replacing windows, doors, or even gutters on a historic property requires ARB review. Budget months, not weeks.
Confusing “Saint Augustine” with the beaches. Saint Augustine Beach is a separate municipality with separate rules; Vilano is St. Johns County. Comp within the right jurisdiction.

What to do next

Pull a zoning verification letter for any property under contract.
Get an STR insurance quote (Proper, Steadily) and feed it into the DSCR Loan Calculator.
Run Comp Analyzer on three same-jurisdiction listings.
Use Year 1 Cash Needs including any ARB / permit reserve.
Read the historic-preservation playbook in Buying STRs in Historic Districts.

Not investment advice. Verify all regulatory, tax, and insurance information with local authorities and licensed professionals before committing capital.

Last reviewed 2026-05-07 · Estimated — community-sourced · Population 14,598