Renting furnished by the month? Read these first.
A month is where short-stay rules and ordinary rental rules start to overlap. Below are six public rules that decide what you pay, what you can cancel and what protects you. Each one is local or platform-specific — there is no single national rule — and none of them is Stead's policy.
Four questions before you sign anything.
01
Count nights, not months
A month can be 28, 30 or 31 nights, and several rules below turn on the exact count. Write down the check-in and checkout dates and count the nights between them.
02
Ask whose rules apply
The platform, the city and the state can each draw a line at a different number of nights. Knowing which one you are under tells you which line matters.
03
Ask what the deposit is
Money you get back at the end, or your last month's rent under another name. The two are treated differently, and the answer changes what you are owed at checkout.
04
Ask what leaving early costs
Before you book, not after. Month-long stays often have their own cancellation terms, and they are rarely the same as a weekend's.
Six lines other people drew.
Each applies only where it says it does. Read the source for the full text; it is the authority, not this summary.
On Airbnb, 28 nights or more is a monthly stay
Airbnb treats a reservation of 28 nights or more as a monthly stay, and the long-term cancellation policy applies. If a monthly stay is shortened to 27 nights or less, the guest is responsible for the following 30 days of payment from the day of the change, or until the end of the reservation if fewer than 30 days remain.
What it means for a month: Shortening a month-long booking there is not a clean refund. Read the listing's long-term cancellation policy before you book. This is Airbnb's rule, not Stead's.
Source: Airbnb Help Center, article 50
California lets cities and counties tax stays of 30 days or less
Under Revenue and Taxation Code section 7280, a California city or county may levy a tax on occupying a room or other living space in a hotel, inn, tourist home or house, motel, or other lodging, unless the occupancy is for a period of more than 30 days.
What it means for a month: The line is more than 30 days. A stay of exactly 30 nights does not clear it on that wording. Whether a tax applies, and how much, is set by each city or county, so ask about yours.
California's tenant chapter leaves out taxable transient stays
Civil Code section 1940 applies California's chapter on hiring real property to people who hire dwelling units — tenants, lessees, boarders, lodgers and others. It does not cover transient occupancy in a hotel, motel, residence club, or other facility when that occupancy is or would be subject to tax under Revenue and Taxation Code section 7280.
What it means for a month: The two sections are linked: whether a stay counts as taxable transient occupancy bears on whether that chapter covers you. That turns on the exact stay and place. If it matters to you, ask a lawyer.
Source: California Civil Code § 1940
Florida taxes transient rentals at 6%
Florida Statutes section 212.03 (2025) levies a 6% tax on the total rent charged for living quarters or sleeping accommodations in hotels, apartment houses, roominghouses, condominiums and similar places. One exception is a bona fide written agreement for continuous residence longer than 6 months.
What it means for a month: A one-month stay does not meet that exception. The section lists other exemptions, such as full-time students and active-duty military, so read it for your own case.
Source: Florida Statutes § 212.03 (2025)
In New York City, a whole home can't go to visitors for under 30 days
New York City's Office of Special Enforcement says you cannot rent out an entire apartment or home to visitors for less than 30 days, even if you own or live in the building. New York State law also prohibits advertising an apartment in a Class A multiple dwelling — generally a building with three or more permanent residential units — for any period less than 30 days.
What it means for a month: This is a rule for hosts about stays under 30 days. Staying 30 days or more puts a stay outside that line, but it does not make a rental legal in every building: leases, building rules and other laws still apply.
Source: NYC Office of Special Enforcement, Information for Hosts
A deposit that is really the last rent payment is rent
IRS Publication 527 (2025) tells owners not to count a security deposit as rental income when they receive it if they plan to return it at the end of the lease. If they keep part or all of it because the tenant didn't meet the lease terms, the amount kept is income that year. An amount called a security deposit that is to be used as the final payment of rent is advance rent, and is income when received.
What it means for a month: It is the owner's tax rule, but it hands you a good question to ask: is this a deposit you get back, or the final rent payment by another name?
Source: IRS Publication 527 (2025), Residential Rental Property
A plain-language summary of public sources, checked on 29 September 2026. Not legal or tax advice. Rules change; the linked source is the one that counts.
A clearer picture of your next home.
Each home has its own minimum stay, based on the host's preferences and reviewed eligibility. You see that minimum and every line of the price before you pay.
Homes are not bookable yet. Guest bookings are off while we prepare the platform. Availability will follow ready homes, without a city launch calendar. A 30-night stay doesn't settle the rules above for you: tax and tenancy still depend on the place and the exact stay.
Have a home to share? See how hosting works