Florence Township

Short-term rentals are governed by the parcel’s underlying zoning district under the Florence Township Zoning Ordinance, which was originally adopted in 1957 and is currently posted as Articles 1 through 18 of PDF text plus a Table of Contents on the township zoning page.^[2] The ordinance does not call out short-term or vacation rentals as a separate use class, so STR operation is treated as the residential use of the dwelling unit within whichever district the parcel is in.

Because the township ordinance is posted only as scanned/PDF articles and is not searchable by-district in a single page, by-parcel zoning permissions are not available in machine-readable form here. For any specific property, verify the parcel’s district using the St. Joseph County FetchGIS Parcel Viewer and then confirm STR compatibility in writing with the Zoning Administrator before listing.^[7]

There is no township-level short-term rental registration, permit, or license required in Florence Township as of May 2026.^[2] No application form, no annual fee, and no rental-specific inspection has been adopted by the Township Board.

Operators are still responsible for state-level obligations: collecting and remitting Michigan’s 6% Use Tax on rentals shorter than 30 days, complying with Michigan Construction Code requirements adopted via Ordinance 114 (typically only triggered when work requires a building permit), and following the Truth in Renting Act for any written rental agreement.^[5][8] If your property uses a private septic system, a system evaluation through the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency is often appropriate before high-occupancy STR use begins.^[6]

Florence Township does not publish STR-specific occupancy caps or quiet-hour rules, but three general ordinances apply to any property used for short-term rental: the Junk Vehicle and Litter Ordinance (#104), the Outdoor Festivals Ordinance (#118), and the Dangerous Structures Ordinance.^[2] The Outdoor Festivals Ordinance is the most relevant for STR hosts because it sets permit requirements for any organized gathering on a property, and weddings, family reunions, and large lake parties commonly trigger it.^[4]

The Litter and Junk Vehicle Ordinance enforces visible-property condition standards and can be cited by neighbors as a complaint vehicle if an STR overflows with trash or unregistered vehicles between turnovers.^[3] Florence Township does not have a 24-hour-contact-person requirement in ordinance, but providing a local contact remains a strong practice.

There is no recurring rental inspection in Florence Township. Construction, electrical, mechanical, and plumbing work on STR properties is regulated through the Michigan Construction Code as adopted by Ordinance 114, and triggered when the scope of work requires a permit (additions, structural changes, new bedrooms, deck rebuilds, etc.).^[5] The township uses contracted inspectors: Dave Rigozzi for building inspections and Rick Walter for electrical (517-855-0617).^[1]

Septic system condition is the most common practical issue for Florence Township STR operators because lakefront and rural parcels rely on private on-site sewage disposal. Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency issues septic permits, performs perk tests, and inspects systems at the time of sale or major modification.^[6] If you are buying a Florence Township property to operate as an STR with higher bed counts than the prior owner, a pre-purchase septic evaluation is a cheap way to avoid a six-figure replacement surprise.

Klinger Lake parcels in Florence Township face the same general zoning ordinance as inland parcels, but two practical factors matter more on the lake: shoreline frontage and septic capacity per bedroom.^[6] Older lakefront cottages in this stretch of St. Joseph County frequently have undersized or non-conforming septic systems originally sized for a 2-bed seasonal cottage and now being marketed as 5- or 6-sleeper STR listings, which is a common source of nuisance complaints and code enforcement action.

Before bumping bed count or guest occupancy on a Klinger Lake STR, confirm the permitted bedroom count of the existing septic system through the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency and verify riparian/dock rights and any shoreline-protection setbacks with the Zoning Administrator.^[6] Michigan’s Inland Lakes and Streams Act governs most physical alterations of the shoreline (docks, retaining walls, dredging) and is administered by EGLE rather than the township.