Hamilton County, TN Short-Term Rentals: Extended Home Share (2026)
Key Facts
- STVR threshold
- 30 days or fewer counts as STVR
- Exempt stays
- 31 consecutive days or longer
- Clarifying resolution
- Res. No. 223-030
- Certificate required for actual STVRs
- Hamilton County Development Services
- Governing definition
- Art. II, Short-Term Vacation Rental
Summary
Renting a single-family home in unincorporated Hamilton County for 31 consecutive days or longer falls outside the county's Short-Term Vacation Rental definition entirely, so the STVR certificate, room caps, occupancy formula, and parking rules in Article IV never attach to that longer stay.
SHORT-TERM VACATION RENTAL: A single-family detached dwelling unit that is rented in part or its entirety on a daily or weekly basis for not more than 30 days for overnight stay and are generally advertised or otherwise held out to the public. Short-Term Vacation Rentals are also sometimes referred to as "tourist homes" or "short-term residential rentals" and advertised as such. AMENDED (Res. 423-35, 4/19/23; 923-35, 9/20/23)
Full Breakdown
' The 30-day ceiling was clarified by Resolution No. ' Resolution 423-35 later added the STVR certificate and use-standards package to each district's Schedule of District Regulations, and Resolution 923-35 removed a clause about a permanent residence not being established. Because the 31-day-plus rental sits outside the STVR definition, a homeowner renting an entire house or a room in it for a month or longer does not need a Short-Term Vacation Rental Certificate from Hamilton County Development Services, and is not bound by the STVR package's five-sleeping-room cap, its occupancy formula, or its off-street-parking-only condition found in each district's Use Regulations (for example Article IV, Section 100(10) in the A-1 district). It is treated as an ordinary residential tenancy instead.
Violations & Fines
Because extended stays sit outside the STVR definition, no STVR-specific permit violation applies to them. But a rental actually operated on a short-term, transient basis while being represented as a 31-day-plus lease to avoid the certificate requirement would still be an unpermitted STVR under Article IV, exposing the operator to Article VIII, Section 105's misdemeanor penalty of $25 to $100 per day, enforced by the Hamilton County Sheriff.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need an STVR certificate to rent my home for a month?
What made the 30-day line official?
Are extended home-share stays regulated some other way?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Hamilton County
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