Clarke County, GA Short-Term Rentals: Permit Requirements (2026)

On February 6, 2024 the Mayor and Commission adopted text amendments to Title 9 of the Athens-Clarke County Code establishing short-term rentals as a regulated land use. The Code defines a short-term rental as accommodation for transient guests where a residential dwelling unit is rented or otherwise provided for lodging for a period of less than 31 consecutive days. There are two categories. (1) Home Occupation STR: the applicant must be the owner-occupant of the property OR a long-term tenant of the property owner; only one structure on the parcel may be permitted as an STR; submission requires two forms of government-issued ID establishing residency and a notarized affidavit; review is by the Planning Department with the Fire Marshal's Office. (2) Commercial STR: permitted only in specific zoning districts shown in the STR Ordinance permitted-use chart; applicants must obtain a Special-Use Permit before submitting Construction Plans Review; there are no owner-occupancy or single-structure limits. Both categories require a Business Occupation Tax Certificate from the Finance Department and registration to collect the 7% local hotel-motel excise tax (remitted by the 20th of each month for the prior month, or by the booking platform if Airbnb/Vrbo handles collection). Properties operating before adoption have a sunset/legal-non-conforming pathway: ACC published the final list of legal non-conforming STRs (those that operated September 19, 2022 - September 19, 2023) in mid-2024, and those properties have a 24-month compliance window from March 1, 2025. Contact: Planning Department, 706-613-3515.