Certain Louisville form districts restrict short-term rentals to a host's primary residence, blocking investor-owned whole-home STRs in protected neighborhoods while still permitting them in commercial and downtown form districts under LDC Chapter 156.
Louisville's form-district zoning treats Traditional Neighborhood and Neighborhood form districts as primarily residential, where the LDC limits non-owner-occupied STRs to discourage conversion of housing stock. Hosts must demonstrate primary residence through driver's license, voter registration, or utility records when registering. Whole-home unhosted STRs are generally directed toward Downtown, Town Center, and Mixed-Use form districts. KRS §82.085 preserves Metro authority to set these locational rules, though it bars outright bans on STRs as a property use category.
Renting a non-primary residence as an unhosted STR in a restricted form district can result in cease-and-desist orders, civil penalties, and revocation of any existing STR registration.
Louisville, KY
Louisville Metro Land Development Code Chapter 156 distinguishes hosted short-term rentals, where the operator lives onsite during guest stays, from unhosted...
Louisville, KY
Louisville Metro requires every short-term rental to register under LMCO Chapter 115 before being listed or advertised. Registration includes proof of insura...
See how Louisville's primary-residence-only rule rules stack up against other locations.
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