Walk into a furnished cottage in Union Pier or Harbert this summer and you'll likely find it taped inside a kitchen cabinet or waiting in a folder on the counter: a rental history sheet showing two or three seasons of nightly rates, occupancy percentages, and gross income. It's meant to reassure a buyer that the numbers are real. In Chikaming Township, that sheet no longer means what it used to.
As of this year, a short-term rental permit in the township does not transfer with the property. It ends the day the deed changes hands. If you're touring a "turnkey rental" anywhere in Union Pier, Lakeside, Harbert, or Sawyer, the income history on that sheet describes a business that legally stops existing at your closing table, not one you're buying into.
The Permit Ends Where the Deed Begins
Chikaming Township adopted a new short-term rental ordinance on February 12, 2026, after months of public meetings and a committee study, and it took effect March 23, 2026, replacing a framework that had been in place since 2018. The ordinance is direct about what happens to a permit when a property sells. As reported by the Herald Palladium, the ordinance states that "the permit will automatically terminate on the date of transfer."
That single clause changes the math on every furnished, income-producing listing in the township. A seller's two years of Airbnb receipts are real. Whether you can generate the same income under your own name is a separate question, decided by whether a new permit is available when you apply, not by what the previous owner earned.
How Tight the Window Really Was
The township didn't build in much room. When the new ordinance took effect, existing and renewing operators already accounted for most of the available slots.
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| October 2025 | Township enacts a moratorium on new STR licenses while a committee studies the market |
| February 12, 2026 | Board adopts Ordinance 164 by a 5-0 vote, capping active permits at 550 |
| March 23, 2026 | Ordinance takes effect, moratorium lifts, and new applications open township-wide |
| Rollout | An estimated 517 of 550 permits already spoken for by existing and renewing operators |
That last line is simple arithmetic, not speculation. The Harbor Country News reported the pre-ordinance count at an estimated 435 active licenses with 82 more up for renewal, a total of 517 against a cap of 550. That left roughly 33 new permits open township-wide the day applications started, across every listing in Union Pier, Lakeside, Harbert, and Sawyer at once.
The township's own reasoning for capping supply is worth understanding, because it explains why this isn't likely to loosen soon. Short-term rentals had grown from about 308 licenses in 2018 to 517 by early 2026, or roughly 13 percent of the township's housing stock, according to a rental study cited on WSJM. Township Supervisor David Bunte told the station that housing costs had become difficult for people who work in the township, including teachers, police, and fire staff. The cap was built to hold the line on that growth, not to expand it.
What This Means If You're Buying for Rental Income
If a lakefront property in Chikaming Township is marketed with rental projections, treat those numbers as historical color, not a transferable asset. Under the current ordinance, permits are non-transferable, and the township's rental permit page confirms that once the 550-permit cap is reached, no additional applications are accepted until a future cycle opens.
There is a legal path to rental income that doesn't run into the cap. Chikaming Township registers long-term rentals, meaning leases of 31 days or longer, on a separate track with no numeric ceiling. If your investment plan depends on rental income and you can't secure a fresh short-term permit, a longer lease term remains an open option while the township works through its capped supply. It's a different revenue model than a weekend-turnover Airbnb, but it's the one that doesn't require winning a first-come, first-served window.
For buyers who intend to occupy the home themselves and treat any future rental as a bonus rather than a plan, the cap matters less directly. It still affects resale. A buyer two or three years from now will face the same non-transferable rule you do, and the property's marketability as an income asset depends on permit availability at that future date, not on any history you build in the meantime.
The Second Signature You'll Need: Erosion and Dune Permits
The rental permit isn't the only permission in Chikaming Township that runs with specific conditions rather than with the seller's good intentions. A lakefront or near-lakefront parcel can also carry a state erosion or dune designation that governs what you're allowed to build, regardless of how the current structure sits on the lot.
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy designates shoreline as a High Risk Erosion Area when it has been receding at one foot or more per year over at least 15 years. Once a parcel carries that designation, a permit is required for construction anywhere on it, including a house, garage, addition, septic system, or covered porch, and EGLE is explicit that this applies no matter how far the project sits from the water. Application fees run from $50 to $500, and EGLE has up to 60 days to process a completed application.
Chikaming Township's own zoning ordinance layers a further requirement on top of the state rule. Principal structures along the Lake Michigan shoreline must sit back at least 150 feet from the Regulatory Ordinary High Water Mark, and the ordinance flags both Critical Dune and High Risk Erosion Area zones as places where the township retains authority over lot size, setbacks, and driveway placement. A Critical Dune designation is broader still. It can extend along a dune ridge well inland from the beach itself, and inside that boundary a permit is typically required for nearly any ground disturbance, tree removal included.
None of this shows up by looking at a house. It shows up by pulling the parcel's designation status, and EGLE notes that the designation runs with the land through any future splits or combinations, so a clean-looking survey from decades ago doesn't clear a current sale.
What to Ask Before You Write the Offer
A short list, worth running through before an offer goes in on anything in Union Pier, Lakeside, Harbert, or Sawyer:
- Does the seller currently hold an active short-term rental permit, and has the listing agent confirmed with the township that the permit terminates automatically at closing rather than transferring to you
- If rental income is part of your plan, is a new permit realistically available given the current cap, or does your plan depend on long-term leasing instead
- Has the parcel been checked against EGLE's High Risk Erosion Area and Critical Dune maps, not just visually assessed from the bluff
- If a designation applies, does your renovation or rebuild plan require a permit under Part 323 or Part 353 of Michigan's Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act, and how does that timeline fit your closing schedule
- Is the property on private septic and well, which is common outside the township's limited sewer service areas, and has that system been inspected recently by the Berrien County Health Department
None of these questions are things a seller is obligated to volunteer. They're things a buyer's agent should be running down before earnest money changes hands.
Questions Worth Asking
Does the erosion or dune designation only apply to homes right on the bluff? No. Critical Dune boundaries can extend well inland along a dune ridge, and a High Risk Erosion Area designation applies to the entire parcel it's assigned to, not just the section closest to the water. A structure set back from the bluff can still fall inside a regulated zone.
If I'm buying to live in the home, does the short-term rental cap affect me at all? Not for day-to-day living, but it affects the property's future flexibility and resale value as an income asset. A future buyer will face the same non-transferable rule, so any rental upside you might add later depends on permit availability at that time, not on anything you establish in the meantime.
Can I do a long-term rental while I wait for a short-term permit to open up? Yes. Chikaming Township registers leases of 31 days or longer separately from short-term rentals, with no numeric cap, just annual registration. It's a different income model, but it doesn't require competing for a limited number of slots.
Harbor Country's lakefront market rewards buyers who read past the listing photos, and in 2026 that means reading the township's ordinance page as closely as the appraisal. If you're weighing a purchase in Union Pier, Lakeside, Harbert, or Sawyer and want a second set of eyes on what a specific parcel's designation status and rental eligibility actually look like, Jackson Matson has spent more than two decades tracking exactly this kind of detail across Southwest Michigan's shoreline. Let's Connect before you write the offer, not after.
