Atlanta Passes New Short-Term Rental Rules

Atlanta's city council has passed new regulations governing short-term rentals like Airbnb, voting "13-1 to allow homeowners to rent rooms or entire houses to guests for up to 30 days, as long as the owners apply for an annual license, pay a $150 license fee, and collect city hotel-motel taxes from guests." Wilborn P. Nobles III, writing in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, notes that the measure comes as a compromise after "Councilman Howard Shook initially proposed a ban on short-term rentals."

Short-term rental giant Airbnb called the new rules "clear and equitable," telling the Atlanta Journal Constitution that the new regulatory environment will allow "responsible hosts to continue earning crucial income." To address community concerns about noise, vandalism, and safety, the law "subjects owners to a $500 fine for violations such as noise nuisances" and "allows the city to revoke an owner’s rental license for a year if the owner’s property commits three violations within a year."

Recently, San Diego also passed new regulations limiting the number of short-term rental units in the city amid concerns about housing affordability.