City Watch
Short-term rental rules in Forks, WA
How Forks regulates short-term rentals: the rules that apply, their sources, and pending changes.
Rules here limit which homes may operate as short-term rentals, how many, where, or for how many nights a year.
- Whole-structure vacation/visitor rental requires a discretionary, deniable Special Use Permit ('S') in the R-1, R-2 and R-3 residential districts under the FMC 17.15.060 land use matrix
- Whole-home permitted by-right ('P') only in R-4 (high density residential) and the C-1/C-2/C-3 commercial zones; prohibited ('X') in Public Land and Industrial zones
- Escape valve: small in-home vacation/visitor rental of no more than two lodging units is permitted outright (FMC 17.75.045) subject to safety, business-license and DOR conditions; separate-facility rental <=500 sq ft permitted outright (FMC 17.10.225)
- No citywide numeric cap, no primary-residence-only mandate; the supply device is the discretionary special-use gate on absentee whole-home in low/moderate-density residential zones
Based on: FMC 17.10.567 + 17.15.060 Land Use Matrix; Ord. No. 629 (Forks City Council, hearing Dec 12 2017; adopted 2018)
Summary of the rule
Land use matrix FMC 17.15.060 row 'Vacation/Visitor Rental': Residential 1 (Very Low Density) = S, Residential 2 (Low Density) = S, Residential 3 (Moderate Density) = S, Residential 4 (High Density) = P, C-1/C-2/C-3 Commercial = P, Public Land/Industrial Park/Industrial-General = X. Key: 'C – Conditional P – Permitted S – Special X – Prohibited.'
Last reviewed Sep 15, 2026 · Sources · Report an error
Pending legislation
Monitoring Forks · system last checked Oct 25, 2026
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City Watch provides good-faith summaries of publicly available information as of the review date shown. Rules, enforcement, and permit availability can change, and summaries may contain errors or omissions. Ratings describe the general regulatory environment; they do not establish whether a particular property or stay is permitted. This is general information, not legal advice. Before buying, listing, or hosting, verify applicable requirements with the responsible authorities and review any HOA, condominium, deed, or lease restrictions.