South Fulton, GA Rental Property Rules: Rental Registration (2026)
Key Facts
- Threshold
- Applies to 4+ unit rental dwellings
- Registration document
- Occupational tax certificate required to operate
- Initial inspection
- 100% of units inspected before first certificate
- False certification penalty
- Up to $1,000 fine per unit
- Adoption
- Ord. No. 2021-018, effective 8-24-2021
Summary
Owners of four or more multifamily rental units in South Fulton must hold a city occupational tax certificate, and before the city issues the first one it requires a code compliance certificate covering every unit inspected in the prior 12 months. The rule applies under § 3-3003.2(a), adopted August 24, 2021.
(a)Occupation tax. All owners of multifamily rental dwellings or multifamily rental units within the city that receive income for use of four or more such dwellings or units and meet the requirements of O.C.G.A. § 48-13-5 for having a location or office within the city (i) shall obtain an occupational tax certification from the city pursuant to Title 2, Taxation, Chapter 5, Business and Occupancy Taxes of this Code and (ii) shall provide to the city, prior to receiving an initial occupational tax certificate, a code compliance certificate covering 100 percent of the multifamily rental units within the 12 month period immediately preceding the date of the certification.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 13 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
§ 48-13-5, to hold an occupational tax certificate issued under Title 2, Chapter 5 of the city code. Before the city will issue that initial certificate, the owner must submit a code compliance certificate, executed by an ICC-certified building inspector or licensed architect/engineer, covering 100 percent of the units inspected within the preceding 12 months. Newly built or significantly renovated dwellings that already hold a certificate of occupancy get a five-year grace period before this inspection requirement kicks back in. 3(a), and that failure is itself grounds, once judicially determined, for the building official to inspect the property at the owner's cost, with unpaid inspection fees becoming a property lien.
Separately, failing to pay the occupational tax itself is also a Code violation. 4(a); a certified inspector who knowingly, recklessly or negligently files a fraudulent inspection report faces the same $1,000-per-unit fine and can be barred from submitting reports to the city for up to five years.
Violations & Fines
Renting without a current occupational tax certificate or code compliance certificate violates § 3-3003.3(a) and triggers city inspection at the owner's expense with a lien for unpaid costs. Falsely certifying a unit compliant carries a fine up to $1,000 per unit under § 3-3003.4(a), and a certified inspector who files a fraudulent report faces the same fine plus up to a five-year bar from the program.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do all rental properties in South Fulton have to register?
What's required before I get my first occupational tax certificate for a rental property?
What's the penalty for lying on a rental compliance certificate?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in South Fulton
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Rental Registration in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Fulton County handle rental registration.