Short-term rental rules · Anniston, Alabama
Short-term rentals in Anniston, explained properly.
Anniston, Alabama regulates short-term rentals in Article IV of Chapter 13 of its City Code (Ord. No. 21-O-11, adopted July 6, 2021). A short-term rental is a dwelling unit, or part of one, rented for at least one overnight stay but less than 30 days. Each rental needs a City STR business license and a certificate of occupancy issued after an inspection, a 24-hour emergency contact, insurance, and notice to adjoining owners. Occupancy is capped at two persons per bedroom plus two, or four per parking space, whichever is lower; weddings, parties and similar events are prohibited. Violations are punishable by a fine of $100 to $500, and the license can be suspended or revoked. The City zoning code, which decides where the use is allowed, and the City tax section were not read for this page.
At a glance
What you need to know before you buy or list
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Are short-term rentals allowed? | Conditional: Article IV of Chapter 13 regulates short-term rentals in residential and nonresidential districts and requires a City license and certificate of occupancy; the zoning code that decides where the use is allowed was not read[1]ClauseClauseClauseConfirming |
| Is a City short-term rental business license required? | Yes: no one may offer, advertise or rent a short-term rental without a valid and current STR business license from the City, and one license is needed for each short-term rental[1]ClauseClauseClauseClause |
| Is a certificate of occupancy required to rent a short-term rental? | Yes: a valid certificate of occupancy issued after inspection by the building and safety division, good for 12 months; no fee when the City inspects, $10 when issued on a qualified agency's verified statement[1]ClauseClauseClauseClauseClause |
| City privilege or license tax on short-term rentals | A licensee must charge, collect, report and remit the City privilege or license tax set under Sec. 30.22(g) of Chapter 30; the rate is in that section, which this page has not read[1]Clause |
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Detailed rules
The full picture, section by section
Operating rules
| What counts as a short-term rental? | A dwelling unit, or part of one, rented or offered for rent for at least one overnight stay but less than 30 days per rental[1]ClauseClause Sec. 13.10 treats the rental of a dwelling unit for a weekly, monthly or other definite term exceeding one (1) month as a long-term rental governed by Chapter 13, Article III, Rental Housing Health and Safety, not by Article IV. |
|---|---|
| Occupancy limit | No more than two persons per bedroom plus two persons, or four persons per parking space, whichever is more restrictive; one guest or party at a time[1]ClauseClauseClauseClause Sec. 13.13 says a unit may not be rented to or occupied by more than one guest or party during any rental period. The building and safety division determines the number of bedrooms and parking spaces when it issues the STR business license or certificate of occupancy, and the owner or operator must limit overnight occupancy to the maximum by written agreement with the renter. |
| Weddings, parties and events | Prohibited: a short-term rental may be rented only for a lodging use, not for weddings, parties, concerts or similar events[1]ClauseClause Sec. 13.12(a) also bars using a short-term rental for such events during any rental period. The owner, operator or emergency contact must act promptly to prevent a repeat once told a renter or guest has broken the article or a City noise, garbage or other rule (Sec. 13.12(g)). |
| Parking | Adequate off-street parking for all renter and guest parking is required; recreational vehicles, buses and trailers may not be parked on the street or forward of the front building line[1]ClauseClause Sec. 13.12(d). Each unit's parking space count is set by the building and safety division (Sec. 13.13(c)) and feeds the occupancy limit. |
| Food service and cooking facilities | A licensee, owner or operator may not prepare or serve food to a renter or guest, and cooking facilities are not permitted in any STR guest rooms[1]ClauseClause Sec. 13.12(e). |
| Signage | No on-premises signage legible from a public street or right-of-way for a short-term rental in a residential or planned residential district[1]Clause Sec. 13.12(b) names residential and planned residential districts as its scope. |
| Posting in the rental | A copy of the STR license, the emergency contact information and the house rules must be posted in a conspicuous place within the rental[1]ClauseClause Sec. 13.12(f) requires house rules that comply with the article. Sec. 13.12(c) also requires each rental to comply with all City laws, ordinances, regulations and codes, including those on building construction, fire safety, noise and garbage collection and disposal. |
Penalties & enforcement
| Penalties for violations | A violation of Article IV is an offense; on conviction the fine is not less than $100 and not more than $500[1]ClauseClause Sec. 13.17. License suspension and revocation are covered separately in Sec. 13.15. |
|---|---|
| Notice, suspension and revocation | The building and safety division gives written notice and a compliance date, may suspend the license until a violation is corrected, and the council may revoke or suspend it after a public hearing on 7 days' notice[1]ClauseClauseClause Sec. 13.15: the division may approve an extension of the compliance date if substantial progress has been made, and may issue a warning to a person not previously warned or cited. For recurrent noise, occupancy, parking and safety violations the code enforcement officer may ask the council to revoke the license; the council holds a public hearing after at least seven (7) days' notice to the licensee and may then order revocation or suspension. |
State law that also applies
| Alabama state lodgings tax | 4% of the charge in most counties (5% in 16 north Alabama counties); stays of 180 continuous days or more are not taxed[2][3]ClauseClauseClauseClauseClauseClauseClause Section 40-26-1 of the Code of Alabama levies a privilege or license tax on every person in the business of renting or furnishing rooms, lodging or accommodations to transients in any hotel, motel, inn, tourist camp, tourist cabin or any other place in which rooms, lodgings or accommodations are regularly furnished to transients for a consideration. The rate is 5% of the charge in the 16 counties of the Alabama mountain lakes area (Blount, Cherokee, Colbert, Cullman, DeKalb, Etowah, Franklin, Jackson, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Morgan and Winston) and 4% in every other county, and the charge includes any charge for personal property and services furnished in the room. The tax does not apply to rooms, lodgings or accommodations supplied for 180 continuous days or more. The Alabama Department of Revenue says lodgings tax is collected through an account at My Alabama Taxes, and that counties and cities may add their own lodgings taxes of between 1% and 13%, some collected by the Department, some by third-party administrators and some by the local government itself. Local lodgings taxes are shown on each place's page. |
|---|---|
| Do booking platforms collect the tax? | Yes, since January 1, 2025: platforms that facilitate a booking and charge a fee must collect and remit the state lodgings tax and parallel local levies, unless a written agreement says the owner remits[4][5]ClauseClauseClauseClauseClauseClause Section 40-26-1.1 of the Code of Alabama (the Alabama Tourism Tax Protection Act of 2024, Act 2024-334) says an accommodations intermediary, meaning a business other than the owner that facilitates a lodging transaction and charges the guest a room or accommodations fee it keeps as compensation, must collect and remit the state lodgings tax and parallel local levies for transactions on or after January 1, 2025. The tax is charged on the room charge, the full retail price the guest pays including any fees. When the intermediary handles the booking for an accommodations provider (an owner with an active lodgings tax account who collects and remits the tax), the tax collected may be remitted to the provider if an executed written agreement says who remits it, and the intermediary is then not liable for tax the provider fails to remit. The intermediary must state the tax separately on the bill. Where the owner has hired a licensed professional property management company, that company is the merchant of record. The Department of Revenue's notice describes the same rules. Which local lodgings taxes a platform collects in a given place is not stated in these sources; check with the platform and the local tax office. |
| Annual address report to the Department of Revenue | Booking platforms and owners who remit lodgings tax must report each year every address rented for more than 14 days in the previous year (some managers and hotels are exempt)[4][5]ClauseClauseClause Section 40-26-1.1(g) requires every accommodations intermediary and accommodations provider to submit an annual report, in a form set by the Department of Revenue, listing the physical address of each accommodation rented or furnished for more than 14 days during the previous year; the report is confidential taxpayer information. Exempt are licensed professional property management companies that collect and remit the state lodgings tax (or manage homes leased for a month or more as the tenant's principal residence), hotels that collect and remit the tax, tourism marketing organizations funded by the tax, and marina, tent camping and RV providers that collect and remit it. The Department of Revenue's notice describes the same reporting rule and exemptions. |
Changes
Recent and pending changes
We read Chapter 13, Article IV (Short-Term Rentals, Secs. 13.10 to 13.17) and the Code of the City of Anniston, Alabama title page on Municode, fetched October 16, 2026. We did not read the City's zoning ordinance, Chapter 30 (including Sec. 30.22), the fee schedule, or City Council agendas and minutes, so we will watch the Code and Council actions for changes to Article IV.
Sources
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This page is general information compiled from public sources, not legal or tax advice. HOA rules, deed restrictions and zoning for a specific property can be stricter. Confirm with the local permitting office and a qualified professional before buying or listing a property.