DeKalb County, GA Short-Term Rentals: Short-Term Rental Permits (2026)

Sec. C of the DeKalb County zoning code bars anyone from renting, leasing or otherwise exchanging for compensation all or part of a dwelling unit as a short term rental without first obtaining a permit from the county's business license division of the department of planning and sustainability. Permits are non-transferable and cannot be used at a location other than the one for which they are issued. Owners must apply annually, paying a fee set by the department, and the application must include the owner's name, address, phone and email; the rental unit's address; the 24-hour contact information of a short-term rental agent (the owner may serve as agent); a sworn acknowledgment that the owner has read and understands the section; the number and location of parking spaces; and the owner's agreement to use best efforts to prevent the rental from disrupting the neighborhood.

The director of planning and sustainability may deny an application or renewal under Sec. 15-45 of the county code, and must suspend or revoke a permit if one of the conditions in Sec. 15-45 occurs. An owner aggrieved by a denial, suspension or revocation may appeal to a hearing officer under Sec. 15-46, on a claim that the director's decision rested on an erroneous fact or an incorrect application of the code. Permits will not be approved at all for dwelling units located within the county's locally designated historic districts.

Every short-term rental is also subject to the county's excise tax under Chapter 24 and to nuisance and noise regulation under Chapter 16. This permit system applies only within unincorporated DeKalb; a rental inside Dunwoody, Brookhaven, Tucker, Stonecrest, Decatur, Chamblee, Doraville, Clarkston, Avondale Estates, Lithonia, Pine Lake or Stone Mountain is governed by that city's own short-term rental rules, not this county code.