Fulton County has no STR-specific occupancy ordinance. The Fulton County Zoning Resolution restricts most residential districts to single-family use, defining a family to include related occupants plus a limited number of unrelated adults. International Property Maintenance Code sleeping-room standards apply. STR occupancy is governed by the host city ordinance, not by the county.
Most of Fulton County is incorporated, so STR occupancy rules in practice come from the city zoning code (Atlanta limits non-owner-occupied STRs and applies its single-family family definition; Sandy Springs, Roswell, Alpharetta, Milton, Johns Creek and South Fulton each have their own family definitions). For the small unincorporated portion governed by the Fulton County Zoning Resolution (Article VI single-family districts AG-1, R-1, R-2, R-2A, R-3, R-3A, R-4, R-4A, R-5, R-5A and R-6 plus Article XII), the county defines family along the standard Georgia model: persons related by blood, marriage or adoption living as a single housekeeping unit, plus a limited number of unrelated adults (typically up to four, but confirm with Fulton County Department of Planning and Community Services at 404-612-7400). Article IV General Provisions and Article V definitions control. The Georgia State Minimum Standard Codes (IBC, IRC and NFPA 101) and the IPMC adopted in Fulton County set life-safety occupant load and sleeping-room minimums of 70 square feet for the first occupant and 50 square feet for each additional occupant. There is no per-bedroom STR cap in unincorporated Fulton because no STR ordinance exists. Georgia HB 555 (2025) did not preempt local family or occupancy regulation.
Exceeding the family or unrelated-adult cap is a Zoning Resolution violation enforced by Fulton County Code Enforcement and is prosecutable in Fulton County Magistrate Court at up to $1,000 and/or 60 days per occurrence under O.C.G.A. 36-1-20, with each day a separate offense. IPMC violations are enforced by the Fulton County Department of Public Works.
Fulton County, GA
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Fulton County, GA
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Fulton County, GA
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Fulton County, GA
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Fulton County, GA
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Fulton County, GA
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See how Fulton County's occupancy limits rules stack up against other locations.
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