Buying an Oceanside, Oregon Rental in 2026: What the Real Numbers Show

Jacob Mishalanie
Aug 21
9 min read

Updated: 16 hours ago

Empty coastal kitchen interior, Oceanside lodging, no people

Oceanside, Oregon short-term rentals brought in $34,813 a year on average, based on a 97-listing sample AirROI tracked from August 2025 through July 2026. Occupancy ran 41.8%, the average nightly rate was $272, and revenue per available night (RevPAR) came in at $120. Revenue is down 2.1% year over year, and active supply contracted 8.5% over the same span , fewer listings, not a flood of new competition.

That 97-listing sample is filed under Netarts in AirROI's data, because Oceanside and Netarts are unincorporated communities on the same stretch of Tillamook County coast and share tourism and rental data. A separate market a few miles up Highway 101, Neskowin, published a materially higher average of $38,932 across 154 listings over the same period. The two towns get blended constantly in buyer packets and lender conversations , this post is about keeping them apart.

What Oceanside's 2026 Numbers Actually Show

Start with the baseline: $34,813 in typical annual revenue across 97 active listings, occupancy at 41.8%, an average nightly rate of $272, and RevPAR of $120. Those four numbers are the underwriting year for Oceanside/Netarts specifically , not a projection, not a five-year average, just the trailing twelve months ending July 2026.

Guests book an average stay of 3.2 nights, and they book about 76 days out , long enough lead time that a well-priced listing can adjust rates seasonally without scrambling for last-minute bookings. The strongest months are August, June, and September, in that order, with August the clear peak. February is the softest month on the calendar, and January posts the weakest occupancy of the year. Most guests are driving down from Portland, with Vancouver, Washington the second-largest source market , this is a regional drive market, not a fly-in destination, and that matters for how you budget marketing spend.

The draw is straightforward: Oceanside's beach fronts the Three Arch Rocks National Wildlife Refuge, one of the more photographed sea-stack views on the Oregon coast, and Netarts Bay next door is a working bay for oyster farming, crabbing, and clamming that pulls in a different visitor than the beach crowd. A listing that plays up tide-pooling, the wildlife refuge overlook, or bay access tends to stand out in a market where most competing photos look the same , three arch rocks at sunset.

Why Neskowin's $38,932 Doesn't Belong in Your Oceanside Underwriting

Neskowin published $38,932 in average revenue across 154 listings over the same period , noticeably higher than Oceanside/Netarts' $34,813. If a lender, broker, or seller hands you a packet that cites the Neskowin number to support an Oceanside purchase, that's a blended comparison, and it overstates the property's real earning power. Ask which town's data backs every figure in a proforma before you sign anything.

The two markets sit close together geographically but aren't interchangeable financially. Neskowin's listing count is also about 60% higher than Oceanside/Netarts', so it isn't a small sample fluke , it's a genuinely different rental market with its own supply, seasonality, and guest base. Keep the two towns on separate lines in any spreadsheet, and treat the Neskowin numbers as a comparison point, not a stand-in for Oceanside's own performance.

Why the Comparison Has to Follow the Parcel

Which town's rules and rental data apply comes down to the parcel, not which name shows up on a listing site or which zip code feels closer. Oceanside isn't an incorporated town with its own town hall , regulatory and licensing questions route through Tillamook County. Pull the county tax map for the specific parcel before you assume which desk handles licensing or which comps apply.

This matters most at closing, when a title company or lender wants a clean answer about jurisdiction. Tillamook County Community Development, at 1510-B Third Street, Tillamook, OR 97141, is the office that handles short-term rental licensing for unincorporated areas including Oceanside and Netarts. Call ahead to confirm current hours and whatever documentation they want for a 2026 license application , county offices update fee schedules and paperwork often enough that it's worth a same-week call rather than relying on a stale PDF.

A county short-term rental operator license is required to legally operate here, but a specific 2026 license fee wasn't posted as a single confirmed dollar figure on the county's primary page as of this writing. Don't let a broker or seller invent that number in a proforma , call Community Development directly and get the current fee and renewal terms in writing before you close. The same caution applies to ownership transfer: a license tied to the previous owner typically doesn't transfer automatically with the deed, so budget time, and potentially a short vacancy window, to get a new license issued in your name.

Reading the 2.1% Year-Over-Year Decline Correctly

Revenue is down 2.1% year over year across the 97-listing Oceanside/Netarts sample. That's one year of data on one sample , worth taking seriously, not worth turning into a five-year trend line or a reason to panic. A single soft year can reflect a wet shoulder season, a shift in how many listings AirROI captured, or a broader Oregon coast pattern showing up in neighboring markets too.

What the decline doesn't do is justify padding the number back up with Neskowin's higher average, or assuming next year automatically bounces back to a prior high. If you're underwriting a purchase, run the deal at $34,813 and stress-test it a further 5-10% below that to see if it still cash-flows. If it only works at the pre-decline number, that's a signal the deal is priced too aggressively for what this market is currently producing , not a reason to go looking for a rosier comp in a different town.

97 Listings and Shrinking Supply: What -8.5% Means for Buyers

Active supply in the Oceanside/Netarts sample fell 8.5% year over year, while typical revenue still landed at $34,813. Fewer competing listings with revenue holding roughly flat is generally a better setup for a new entrant than a market where supply is surging and prices are getting squeezed , it suggests some owners are exiting or converting to long-term rental, which can ease competition for the properties staying in the short-term pool.

Professionally managed listings make up 47.4% of the sample, and Superhost status covers 55.7% of listings , both signals of a reasonably mature, competitive market where guest expectations are set by well-run properties, not just casual hosts. If you're buying to self-manage, budget for photography, pricing tools, and guest communication that can compete with that professionally managed half of the market, not just the DIY half.

Treat the Sample Size as a Sample, Not a Census

97 listings is a real number, but it's a sample, not a full census of every rental in the area, and a subset of it behaves differently than the headline stats suggest. Of that sample, 47 listings run a 30-night minimum stay , meaning nearly half the "listings" AirROI counted are effectively operating as furnished monthly rentals rather than true short-term vacation stays. That skews occupancy and rate comparisons if you're not accounting for it.

If you're planning to operate as a true short-term rental with 2-7 night stays, your realistic comp set is closer to the roughly 50 listings that aren't running a 30-night minimum, not the full 97. Ask any broker or data source whether their averages include or exclude the monthly-minimum listings before you use their numbers in a proforma , mixing the two rental models into one blended average is a smaller-scale version of the same Neskowin-blending mistake covered above.

The safest way to stress-test occupancy is to build a vacancy assumption around the market's actual slow season rather than the annual average. February is the softest month here, and January posts the weakest occupancy , a deal that only cash-flows if every month performs like August isn't underwritten conservatively enough to survive a normal winter.

Licenses Don't Automatically Transfer With the Deed

A short-term rental license tied to the previous owner does not automatically transfer to you when you buy the property. Because Oceanside and Netarts are unincorporated, licensing runs through Tillamook County rather than a town hall, so if you're used to shopping in an incorporated coastal town, don't default to that town's process here , confirm with the county first.

Tillamook County Community Development at 1510-B Third Street, Tillamook, OR 97141 is the office to call. Hours and requirements can change year to year, so confirm both before you promise a closing date or rental start date to a property manager or booking platform. Build a buffer of a few weeks into your closing timeline for license processing , trying to list before a new license is issued in your name risks a platform suspension or a county citation, neither worth the few extra weeks of rental income you might have squeezed in.

What a Buyer Packet Should Actually Carry

A buyer packet for an Oceanside/Netarts purchase should carry this year's actual numbers , $34,813 in typical revenue on 97 listings, 41.8% occupancy, $272 ADR, and the -2.1% year-over-year trend , sourced to this specific town, not a blended or borrowed figure from Neskowin or any other coastal market. It should also carry a plan for confirming the county license and fee directly with Tillamook County Community Development rather than assuming a number.

What it should not carry is an invented purchase price, an invented license fee, or a "corridor" revenue range that quietly folds in a higher-earning neighboring town to make the deal look better. Visitor spending data and tourism statistics are useful context for demand, but they aren't the same thing as debt-service coverage , a lender wants rental revenue history and licensing paperwork, not a visitor count. Keep every number in the packet traceable to Oceanside/Netarts specifically, and you'll be underwriting the property you're actually buying instead of the one a rosier comp implies.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the actual average revenue for an Oceanside, Oregon short-term rental in 2026?

Typical annual revenue across the 97-listing Oceanside/Netarts sample was $34,813, based on AirROI's trailing twelve months from August 2025 through July 2026. Occupancy ran 41.8 percent, average daily rate was $272, and RevPAR was $120. Revenue is down 2.1 percent year over year on that same sample.

Why shouldn't I use Neskowin's numbers when I'm buying in Oceanside?

Neskowin is a separate rental market that published $38,932 in average revenue across 154 listings over the same period, meaningfully higher than Oceanside/Netarts' $34,813. The two towns sit near each other on the coast but have different supply, seasonality, and guest demand. Using Neskowin's higher average to support an Oceanside proforma overstates what the property you're actually buying is likely to earn.

How do I know which town's rules apply to a specific property?

Jurisdiction follows the parcel, not the town name on a listing site. Oceanside and Netarts are unincorporated, so licensing questions route through Tillamook County Community Development at 1510-B Third Street, Tillamook, OR 97141, rather than a local town hall. Pull the county tax map for the specific address before assuming which office or fee schedule applies.

Is a 2.1% revenue decline a reason to walk away from a deal?

Not on its own. It's one year of data on a 97-listing sample, not a multi-year trend. Underwrite the deal at the current $34,813 figure, stress-test it several percentage points lower to see if it still cash-flows, and treat a rosier prior-year number as historical context rather than the number you finance against.

What does the 8.5% drop in active supply mean for a new buyer?

Active listings fell 8.5 percent year over year while typical revenue held close to flat, which suggests some owners exited the short-term rental pool rather than a wave of new competition arriving. That's a generally favorable supply signal for a new entrant, though it's worth confirming current listing counts closer to your purchase date since supply can shift again.

Does the 97-listing count represent the whole market?

No -- treat it as a sample. Note that 47 of those 97 listings run a 30-night minimum stay, meaning they function more like furnished monthly rentals than true short-term vacation stays. If you're planning 2-7 night stays, your realistic comp set is closer to the roughly 50 listings without that minimum, not the full 97.

Does a rental license transfer to me when I buy the property?

No. A short-term rental license tied to the previous owner does not automatically carry over. You'll need to apply through Tillamook County Community Development, confirm current hours and fees, and build processing time into your closing schedule before you commit to a rental start date with a property manager or booking platform.

What should a buyer packet include before I underwrite an Oceanside purchase?

This year's actual Oceanside/Netarts numbers -- $34,813 revenue, 97 listings, 41.8 percent occupancy, $272 ADR -- sourced specifically to this town, plus a confirmed county license fee rather than an assumed one. It should not include a blended Neskowin figure, an invented purchase price, or tourism visitor-spend numbers presented as if they were rental income.

Work with Crest & Cove Creative

Oceanside's $34,813 revenue figure covers 97 listings, but 47 of them run a 30-night minimum and function as monthly rentals, not short stays. Buyer copy that blends the two into one comp set misleads before day one.

We help Oceanside buyers build listing copy around the real short-stay comp set, not the full 97-listing blend that includes monthly rentals.

Reach out at crestcove.co or (256) 998-7502.