What It Costs to Start a Legal Highlands STR Stay — Highlands New Jers

Thomas Garner
16 hours ago
10 min read

Most Highlands listings get marketed as a generic Sandy Hook Bay stay. That pitch could describe a dozen other towns, and it wastes what actually sets Borough of Highlands, Monmouth County, New Jersey apart. Guests who typed Highlands are looking for Twin Lights State Historic Site, Sandy Hook, Seastreak Ferry, Mount Mitchill Scenic Overlook — not Havre de Grace, and not Sea Isle City. 43 active listings sit on this extract. Write the town you can actually walk. Keep the listing specific. A vague water caption loses the booking.

Typical listings here earned about $34,275 last year from 43 active rentals, AirROI trailing twelve months through July 2026. The average night was $359. Occupancy was 39.6 percent. Revenue per available night was $152. Year over year is plus 0.8 percent. Active supply moved -14.0 percent. Do not average in Havre de Grace at $18,791 on 41 listings. That is a different town. Leave Sea Isle City as a different market. Do not mix those towns. Treat this as a small sample, not a blended coast.

The three strongest months are August, June, and July. August is the busiest. February is the slowest. Most guests arrive from New York, then New Jersey. Typical stay is 5.5 nights, booked about 50 days ahead. Call Clerk at 732-872-1224. Borough STR permit $750 annual. Chapter 4-14. Confirm live. Sea Bright is another municipality. AirROI Low is a scrape Independent holds still show up in this sample. Confirm the live desk before you advertise. A regulation scrape is not a permit.

Price the City License Before You Furnish

That heading is the useful way to read Highlands, not a dashboard label. Guests come for Twin Lights State Historic Site. Say that in the listing. Do not bury it under a generic Sandy Hook Bay caption. Do not write Havre de Grace copy onto a Highlands address. Do not use Sea Isle City as if it were this occupancy. Be specific about the walk. A vague caption loses the guest who typed this town. Keep the other town out of the title.

Read more in Highlands Tourism Data and Complete Visitor's Guide to Highlands — Highlands New Jersey Pin. Typical listings earned about $34,275 last year from 43 active rentals, at $359 a night and 39.6 percent occupancy. August is the busiest month. February is the slowest. Most guests arrive from New York. Call Clerk at 732-872-1224. Borough STR permit $750 annual. Chapter 4-14. Confirm live. Sea Bright is another municipality. AirROI Low is a scrape

Year over year is plus 0.8 percent. Supply moved -14.0 percent. Keep Sea Isle City ($31,767 a year) on its own line. A 46.5-percent share of listings uses a 30-night minimum. That is a stay rule, not occupancy. Photograph Twin Lights State Historic Site. Confirm the parcel before you advertise. Sales tax can still apply under 30 days. Call the desk. Do not underwrite another town's year.

Clerk Phone Is Seven Three Two Eight Seven Two One Two Two Four

That heading is the useful way to read Highlands, not a dashboard label. Guests come for Sandy Hook. Say that in the listing. Do not bury it under a generic Sandy Hook Bay caption. Do not write Havre de Grace copy onto a Highlands address. Do not use Sea Isle City as if it were this occupancy. Be specific about the walk. A vague caption loses the guest who typed this town. Keep the other town out of the title.

Read more in Complete Visitor's Guide to Highlands — Highlands New Jersey Pin and Highlands STR Report 2026. Typical listings earned about $34,275 last year from 43 active rentals, at $359 a night and 39.6 percent occupancy. August is the busiest month. February is the slowest. Most guests arrive from New York. Call Clerk at 732-872-1224. Borough STR permit $750 annual. Chapter 4-14. Confirm live. Sea Bright is another municipality. AirROI Low is a scrape

Year over year is plus 0.8 percent. Supply moved -14.0 percent. Keep Sea Isle City ($31,767 a year) on its own line. A 46.5-percent share of listings uses a 30-night minimum. That is a stay rule, not occupancy. Photograph Sandy Hook. Confirm the parcel before you advertise. Sales tax can still apply under 30 days. Call the desk. Do not underwrite another town's year.

New Cards Need the Live Desk

That heading is the useful way to read Highlands, not a dashboard label. Guests come for Seastreak Ferry. Say that in the listing. Do not bury it under a generic Sandy Hook Bay caption. Do not write Havre de Grace copy onto a Highlands address. Do not use Sea Isle City as if it were this occupancy. Be specific about the walk. A vague caption loses the guest who typed this town. Keep the other town out of the title.

Read more in Highlands STR Report 2026 and Market a Highlands Stay. Typical listings earned about $34,275 last year from 43 active rentals, at $359 a night and 39.6 percent occupancy. August is the busiest month. February is the slowest. Most guests arrive from New York. Call Clerk at 732-872-1224. Borough STR permit $750 annual. Chapter 4-14. Confirm live. Sea Bright is another municipality. AirROI Low is a scrape. Confirm the live desk.

Year over year is plus 0.8 percent. Supply moved -14.0 percent. Keep Sea Isle City ($31,767 a year) on its own line. A 46.5-percent share of listings uses a 30-night minimum. That is a stay rule, not occupancy. Photograph Seastreak Ferry. Confirm the parcel before you advertise. Sales tax can still apply under 30 days. Call the desk. Do not underwrite another town's year.

Confirm City Parcel Before You Buy a Permit Story

That heading is the useful way to read Highlands, not a dashboard label. Guests come for Mount Mitchill Scenic Overlook. Say that in the listing. Do not bury it under a generic Sandy Hook Bay caption. Do not write Havre de Grace copy onto a Highlands address. Do not use Sea Isle City as if it were this occupancy. Be specific about the walk. A vague caption loses the guest who typed this town. Keep the other town out of the title.

Read more in Market a Highlands Stay and Highlands STR Rules. Typical listings earned about $34,275 last year from 43 active rentals, at $359 a night and 39.6 percent occupancy. August is the busiest month. February is the slowest. Most guests arrive from New York. Call Clerk at 732-872-1224. Borough STR permit $750 annual. Chapter 4-14. Confirm live. Sea Bright is another municipality. AirROI Low is a scrape. Confirm the live desk.

Year over year is plus 0.8 percent. Supply moved -14.0 percent. Keep Sea Isle City ($31,767 a year) on its own line. A 46.5-percent share of listings uses a 30-night minimum. That is a stay rule, not occupancy. Photograph Mount Mitchill Scenic Overlook. Confirm the parcel before you advertise. Sales tax can still apply under 30 days. Call the desk. Do not underwrite another town's year.

Statewide Tax Sits Statewide

Read more in Highlands STR Rules and Highlands Shoulder. Typical listings earned about $34,275 last year from 43 active rentals, at $359 a night and 39.6 percent occupancy. August is the busiest month. February is the slowest. Most guests arrive from New York. Call Clerk at 732-872-1224. Borough STR permit $750 annual. Chapter 4-14. Confirm live. Sea Bright is another municipality. AirROI Low is a scrape. Confirm the live desk. Do not invent a weekly occupancy cut.

Sea Isle City Permit Is Another Desk

Read more in Highlands Shoulder and Highlands Remote Stays. Typical listings earned about $34,275 last year from 43 active rentals, at $359 a night and 39.6 percent occupancy. August is the busiest month. February is the slowest. Most guests arrive from New York. Call Clerk at 732-872-1224. Borough STR permit $750 annual. Chapter 4-14. Confirm live. Sea Bright is another municipality. AirROI Low is a scrape. Confirm the live desk. Do not invent a weekly occupancy cut.

Year over year is plus 0.8 percent. Supply moved -14.0 percent. Keep Sea Isle City ($31,767 a year) on its own line. A 46.5-percent share of listings uses a 30-night minimum. That is a stay rule, not occupancy. Photograph Sandy Hook. Confirm the parcel before you advertise. Sales tax can still apply under 30 days. Call the desk. Do not underwrite another town's year.

Havre de Grace Is a Different City Desk

Read more in Highlands Remote Stays and DIY vs Hire in Highlands. Typical listings earned about $34,275 last year from 43 active rentals, at $359 a night and 39.6 percent occupancy. August is the busiest month. February is the slowest. Most guests arrive from New York. Call Clerk at 732-872-1224. Borough STR permit $750 annual. Chapter 4-14. Confirm live. Sea Bright is another municipality. AirROI Low is a scrape. Confirm the live desk.

Year over year is plus 0.8 percent. Supply moved -14.0 percent. Keep Sea Isle City ($31,767 a year) on its own line. A 46.5-percent share of listings uses a 30-night minimum. That is a stay rule, not occupancy. Photograph Seastreak Ferry. Confirm the parcel before you advertise. Sales tax can still apply under 30 days. Call the desk. Do not underwrite another town's year.

What You Actually Spend Before Night One

Read more in DIY vs Hire in Highlands and Who Books a Highlands Rental. Typical listings earned about $34,275 last year from 43 active rentals, at $359 a night and 39.6 percent occupancy. August is the busiest month. February is the slowest. Most guests arrive from New York. Call Clerk at 732-872-1224. Borough STR permit $750 annual. Chapter 4-14. Confirm live. Sea Bright is another municipality. AirROI Low is a scrape

Year over year is plus 0.8 percent. Supply moved -14.0 percent. Keep Sea Isle City ($31,767 a year) on its own line. A 46.5-percent share of listings uses a 30-night minimum. That is a stay rule, not occupancy. Photograph Mount Mitchill Scenic Overlook. Confirm the parcel before you advertise. Sales tax can still apply under 30 days. Call the desk. Do not underwrite another town's year.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a typical Highlands STR year on this extract?

AirROI lists typical Highlands listings at about $34,275 a year from 43 active rentals for the trailing twelve months through July 2026. Average night was $359, occupancy was 39.6 percent, and year over year moved plus 0.8 percent. Treat this as a small sample and don't average in Havre de Grace or Sea Isle City.

Can I average Havre de Grace into this year?

No. Havre de Grace, Maryland published about $18,791 from 41 listings — a different state with a notably lower average rate. Those two desks don't cancel into one Sandy Hook Bay year. Cite $34,275 from Highlands' 43 listings only.

Which months are strongest in Highlands?

The three strongest months are August, June, and July, with August the busiest. February is the slowest. Occupancy for the year sits at 39.6 percent on a typical year of $34,275 from 43 listings.

Where do guests come from?

New York is the top origin, then broader New Jersey. Typical stay is 5.5 nights, booked about 50 days ahead, with superhost share at 67.4 percent. Serve the guest who actually typed Highlands rather than a generic Sandy Hook Bay search.

Does a low-regulation label mean there is no local permit?

No — that label is a scrape, not a permit file. Call the Borough Clerk at 732-872-1224. The borough STR permit runs $750 annual under Chapter 4-14 — confirm the live fee. Sea Bright is a separate municipality with different rules that don't apply here.

Is a 30-night minimum the same as occupancy?

No. About 46.5 percent of listings (20 of them) set a 30-night minimum, a platform setting rather than a measure of how booked the calendar is. Typical stay length here is 5.5 nights.

What should a buyer packet carry?

Cite $34,275 from 43 listings, the strongest months of August, June, and July, the slowest month of February, New York as the top origin, a 5.5-night stay with 50-day lead time, and the Clerk line at 732-872-1224. Label Havre de Grace and Sea Isle City separately and never average them in.

Is Sea Isle City the same market as Highlands?

No. Sea Isle City published about $31,767 from 101 listings — a different Jersey Shore market with a much larger sample. Highlands' own figure is $34,275 from 43 listings, with February as the slowest month. Keep these two towns on separate lines.

What sets Highlands apart from a generic Sandy Hook Bay caption?

Guests who search Highlands specifically are looking for the Twin Lights State Historic Site, Sandy Hook itself, the Seastreak Ferry, and Mount Mitchill Scenic Overlook — not a generic bay caption that could describe several other Jersey Shore towns.

Where do I confirm Highlands' current STR rules?

Call the Borough Clerk at 732-872-1224 and confirm the live $750 annual permit fee under Chapter 4-14 before you advertise.

Work with Crest & Cove Creative

Highlands listings often get marketed as a generic Sandy Hook Bay stay that could describe a dozen other Jersey Shore towns, which wastes the pull of Twin Lights and the Seastreak Ferry and is what actually costs the booking.

Crest & Cove writes Highlands-specific copy naming the landmarks guests are actually searching for, and keeps Havre de Grace and Sea Isle City off your listing entirely. Send us the address to get started.

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