Tuscaloosa, AL Short-Term Rentals: Extended Home Share (2026)

City of Tuscaloosa Zoning Ordinance Sec. 25-101.c.4.iv governs how long a dwelling can operate as a short-term rental before the operator needs discretionary approval. Inside the tourist overlay boundary but outside a historic district, any eligible dwelling may run as a short-term rental by right for up to forty-five (45) days a year; going beyond that requires a special exception use permit under subsection (b)(2). Outside the tourist overlay boundary and outside a historic district, only a multifamily dwelling gets the by-right forty-five-day allowance, while every other dwelling type needs a special exception from day one, per subsection (b)(3). Inside a historic district, no by-right operation exists at all: any short-term rental there needs a special exception use permit under subsection (a).

Once a property is operating under a special exception, subsection (f)(2) sets a different clock: no more than thirty (30) days of rental in the first calendar year, rising to forty-five (45) days in each year after, unless the zoning board of adjustment sets a different number under the special-exception decision standards in Sec. 25-39(d). When the board decides an extended home-share application, subsection (g) directs it to weigh whether the property is instead leased whole to one tenant for 30-plus consecutive nights, whether the short-term use is the primary or an accessory use of the dwelling, and the complaint and violation history of the property if it was previously used as a short-term rental.