How long is the STR License waitlist in Upper Blue Basin? An updated estimate
If you own — or are considering buying — property in the Upper Blue River Basin (unincorporated Summit County) and want to short-term rent it, the first question is almost always the same: how long will I actually wait for a license?
Summit County caps the number of Type II short-term rental licenses in the Upper Blue, Lower Blue, and Snake River basins, and once that cap is reached, new applicants go onto a waitlist. A spot only opens up when an existing license lapses or isn't renewed. The county doesn't publish an estimated wait time, so we ran the numbers ourselves.
The data:
I pulled the Upper Blue Basin waitlist on January 27, 2026. As of today, roughly eight months later, 27 addresses have cleared the list, and 115 properties remain on it.
That works out to a clearing rate of about 3.4 addresses per month. At that pace, working through the current list of 115 would take approximately 34 months — just under three years.
A few caveats worth flagging:
This is a pace-based estimate, not an official county timeline. The clearing rate can shift if the county adjusts basin caps, if license turnover speeds up or slows down, or if policy changes affect renewals. It's also worth remembering that a spot on the waitlist doesn't guarantee an eventual license — applicants who miss the county's 30-day window to apply once notified lose their place and have to start over.
If you're weighing a purchase with STR income in mind, this waitlist timeline should factor directly into your holding-period math.
Sources & Further Reading