Rock Hill, SC Short-Term Rentals: Host Presence Rule (2026)

19(C)(4)(b) targets a specific booking model: renting individual rooms in the same short-term rental to unrelated guest groups at the same time, as opposed to renting the whole unit to one group. The city allows that only when two conditions are both met: the host must be present on the property during the rental, and the guests must be made aware of the room-share situation before they book. Absent host presence, the practice is off-limits. 19(C)(4)(c), which requires that if the property is not owner-occupied, either the owner must live within 15 miles of the city limits and be reachable by phone at all times, or the host must name a designated responsible agent living within that 15-mile radius who is reachable at all times and authorized to accept service of process.

Read together, the two provisions mean Rock Hill either wants a host physically present when rooms are shared among strangers, or wants a locally reachable owner or agent on call, so the city always has someone accountable close to the property. 19(C)(4), so the host-presence condition binds pre-2023 amortized permits the same as new ones.