Short-Term Rentals

How to Start an Airbnb in Memphis: 2026 Investor Guide

April 29, 2026

How to Start an Airbnb in Memphis: 2026 Investor Guide

Memphis is not a beach town. It is not a ski resort. And it is not a weekend getaway destination for Instagram influencers.

It is a transit market. Over 40% of Memphis Airbnb bookings happen within 48 hours of check-in. Guests come for work, medical appointments, family visits, and events. They want clean, fast, and functional. Not a hot tub with a view.

That distinction changes everything about how you start an Airbnb in Memphis. The playbook that works in Gatlinburg or Destin will fail here. This guide covers what actually works, step by step, based on managing one of the largest locally owned STR portfolios in the city.

Buy the Right Property

Memphis entry prices run $130,000 to $200,000 for a standard 2-3 bedroom home. That is half or less of what you would pay in Nashville, and a fraction of coastal markets.

Location drives everything. Downtown Memphis commands $150-$200+ nightly rates on event nights. Midtown pulls steady medical and university demand at $120-$160. Berclair is the value play for investors who want cash flow over premium pricing.

A few things to look for when buying a Memphis STR property:

Proximity to demand drivers. FedEx, St. Jude, University of Memphis, and AutoZone bring travelers year-round.
Pet-friendly layouts with fenced yards. Memphis is not a walking city. Guests with dogs book longer and pay more.
Single-story or easy access. Traveling nurses and corporate guests want simple, not charming.

Use the Memphis Rental Investment Calculator to run the numbers before you make an offer. And hire a Memphis closing attorney to handle the transaction. Tennessee allows both title companies and attorneys, but an attorney closing gives you an extra layer of protection on the legal side.

Get Your STR Permit

Memphis requires a short-term rental permit for any stay under 30 days under Ordinance 5631, and properties that were operating before the ordinance took effect may carry grandfathered status worth verifying before you buy. The application costs $300. Annual renewal is $150. You will also need:

Proof of $1 million in liability insurance
A site plan showing parking and occupancy limits
Compliance with building, health, and safety codes
A local contact person within 50 miles of the property

The process is straightforward if your property is in good shape. Expect an inspection. Do not skip this step. Operating without a permit carries a $50/day fine per unit plus court costs. The full walkthrough is in our Memphis STR permit guide.

You also need to understand Memphis short-term rental rules around noise, occupancy limits, and responsible party requirements. The city is enforcing these more aggressively in 2026 than in prior years.

Furnish for the Guest, Not for Instagram

Memphis Airbnb guests are not looking for design-forward spaces. They want a bed that sleeps well, blackout curtains, a functional kitchen, fast WiFi, and a clean bathroom. That is the list.

Furnishing a 2-3 bedroom Memphis STR runs $8,000 to $15,000 depending on how much you source secondhand versus new. Do not over-invest in decor. Invest in mattresses, linens, and towels. Those three things drive more five-star reviews than anything on the walls.

Every property needs: a coffee station (guests expect pods), extra toilet paper and paper towels, basic cookware, and a lockbox or smart lock for self check-in. Memphis is a 40%+ same-day booking market. If a guest cannot get in without coordinating with you, you will lose bookings.

Price It Right From Day One

We run Airbnb-only. No VRBO, no Booking.com, no direct booking sites. No good insurance exists for direct bookings, and splitting your inventory across platforms splits your reviews and ranking. Master one algorithm.

For pricing, we use Airbnb Smart Pricing as a baseline with manual adjustments. No PriceLabs. No Wheelhouse. No Beyond Pricing. That saves $0/month in pricing software and performs as well or better when you know your market.

Memphis nightly rates average $145 across our portfolio versus $138 for the market. That 5% premium comes from operational quality, not pricing tricks. Listings that turn fast, photograph well, respond quickly, and screen guests earn higher placement in the Airbnb algorithm. That placement drives rates.

When you start an Airbnb in Memphis, price competitively for your first 30 days to build reviews. Then let the algorithm reward your performance. Chasing occupancy with discounts does not work in this market.

Screen Every Guest

Memphis is not a market where you accept every booking request. We reject 25% of all booking requests. One in four. That protects the property, protects the neighbors, and protects your review score.

Red flags include same-city bookings (often parties), single-night Saturday requests with no profile history, and guests who refuse to answer basic questions about their trip. Saying no to bad bookings is how you keep your five-star rating above 85%.

Understand the Tax Situation

Memphis STR hosts owe:

15.25% occupancy privilege tax on each booking
$2 per bedroom per night assessment
State sales tax (Airbnb collects this automatically)
Federal and state income tax on net rental income

Airbnb handles the collection on their platform, so the guest-facing taxes are mostly automatic. But you are responsible for tracking your income and expenses for tax filing. A cost segregation study can accelerate your depreciation and significantly reduce your tax bill in year one.

Decide: Self-Manage or Hire an Operator

You can self-manage a Memphis Airbnb from out of state. People do it. But the data on what actually happens is worth reading before you commit to that path.

The real numbers from a 5-property Memphis STR portfolio show what professional management can deliver. Across the full LPS short-term rental portfolio over the past 12 months: 67.5% occupancy versus a 57% market average, a $145 average nightly rate, and 85% five-star reviews across 7,000+ guest reviews. That performance gap is not about luck. It is about sub-hour turnovers, 10 in-house cleaners, near-24/7 guest communication, and 4 dedicated ops staff.

LPS manages the entire STR operation at 10% of collected revenue. That is half or less of what most Memphis managers charge. We handle listing optimization, pricing, turnovers, guest communication, screening, maintenance, and reporting. You collect the check.

That is half or less of the 20-25% most Memphis managers charge, and our breakdown of what every Memphis property management firm charges makes it easy to see exactly how those numbers stack up side by side.

Ready to start an Airbnb in Memphis? Run your numbers or email andrew@staywithlps.com and we will walk through what a property in your price range can produce.

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