Short-term rental rules · Asheville, North Carolina
Short-term rentals in Asheville, explained properly.
Asheville effectively limits short-term rentals to "homestays": a permitted homeowner living on-site full-time may rent one or two bedrooms for stays under 30 days, anywhere in a residential zone. Renting an entire home or unit short-term (a "short-term vacation rental") is banned citywide except in the small Resort zoning district, making whole-home Airbnb-style rentals effectively off-limits across nearly all of Asheville.
Draft. These rules were compiled from the official sources listed below but have not yet been checked line by line. Confirm with the city before making decisions.
At a glance
What you need to know before you buy or list
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Are short-term rentals allowed? | Only as homestays in residential zones; whole-home rentals confined to the Resort zoning district[1][2] |
| What qualifies as a homestay | Owner lives on-site full-time; rents only 1-2 bedrooms; stays under 30 days[1] |
| Homestay permit fee | $200 one-time application fee; no expiration, no separate annual renewal fee[3]Confirming |
| Buncombe County occupancy tax rate | 6% of gross receipts[4] |
| Typical combined guest tax | ~13%[3] |
| Penalty for operating an illegal short-term rental | $500/day after a 30-day compliance notice[3]Confirming |
| Does North Carolina preempt local STR bans? | No — North Carolina leaves core STR use rules to local zoning[5] |
| Pending state bill that could override Asheville's ban | SB 291 (2025) — stalled since introduction[5]Confirming |
| Buncombe County STR policy review status | Postponed indefinitely after Hurricane Helene[6]Confirming |
| Last researched | September 25, 2026 |
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Detailed rules
The full picture, section by section
Eligibility & zoning
| Where homestays are allowed | Any residential zone, if the owner lives on-site[1] A homestay may operate in any residential zone in Asheville, provided the owner occupies the dwelling full-time and rents no more than two bedrooms. |
|---|---|
| Whole-home STR outside the Resort district | Prohibited in residential districts; requires a change-of-use permit where allowed[7] Entire-home short-term rentals (STVRs) are prohibited in residential zoning districts. Where they are permitted — the Resort zoning district and certain commercially zoned areas — a change-of-use permit is required. |
| History of the bedroom limit | Reduced from 3 to 2 bedrooms in 2015[7] Asheville City Council adopted updates to homestay regulations in November 2015 that reduced the maximum number of rentable bedrooms from three to two and removed percentage-of-home-use restrictions, aiming to protect neighborhood character while clarifying enforcement. |
Licensing & application
| Homestay permit application process | Online application; annual renewal form; no listed permit expiration[2] New homestay permits are applied for through the city's online portal; a separate annual renewal form is used for existing permits, though the underlying permit itself carries no expiration date and there is no additional annual renewal fee beyond the initial application. |
|---|---|
| Compliance division contact and hours | Development Services Compliance Division; Mon–Fri, 8:30am–5pm[1] Homestay and STR compliance is handled by the Development Services Compliance Division, which accepts complaints via the Asheville App and operates weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., excluding public holidays; investigations may occur outside these hours but staff are not formally on-call. |
Operating rules & enforcement
| Enforcement process for violations | 30-day compliance notice, then daily fines[7] Property owners found operating an illegal homestay or whole-home short-term rental first receive a 30-day compliance notice. If the violation isn't resolved within that window, the city can begin issuing fines. |
|---|---|
| How violations are reported | Asheville App[1] Residents and the public can report suspected homestay or short-term rental violations through the Asheville App, which routes complaints to the Compliance Division. |
Taxes & fees
| North Carolina state sales tax | 4.75%[3] North Carolina's state sales tax applies to short-term lodging transactions statewide. |
|---|---|
| Buncombe County local sales tax | 2.25%[3] Buncombe County adds a 2.25% local sales tax on top of the state rate, for a 7% combined sales tax on short-term lodging. |
| Occupancy tax filing and owner liability | Monthly filing by the 20th; owner remains ultimately liable[4] The Buncombe County occupancy tax is filed monthly by the 20th of the following month. Property owners remain ultimately liable for the tax even when a booking platform collects and remits it on their behalf. |
| Long-stay tax exemption | Stays of 90+ continuous days by the same guest are exempt[4] Guests staying 90 or more continuous days are treated as long-term tenants and exempt from the occupancy tax. |
Changes
Recent and pending changes
Checked North Carolina legislative bill tracking and Asheville/Buncombe County local news as of the research date below. State Senate Bill 291 (2025), which would bar outright local STR bans, has stalled since its March 2025 introduction but could still move and would likely force changes to Asheville's Resort-district-only rule for whole-home rentals if enacted; a similar earlier bill sponsored by state Senator Tim Moffitt in 2023 failed to advance. Separately, Buncombe County's own STR policy review was paused indefinitely after Hurricane Helene disaster recovery took priority — confirm current status of both before relying on this summary for a close call.
Asheville City Council adopted updates to its homestay ordinance in November 2015, reducing the maximum number of rentable bedrooms from three to two and removing percentage-of-home-use restrictions.
Senate Bill 291, introduced in the North Carolina Senate in March 2025, would bar cities from outright STR prohibitions and overnight caps and set guardrails for local permit systems. As of the most recent tracking found, it had seen no advancement since introduction. If passed, it would likely require Asheville to allow whole-home rentals beyond the Resort zoning district.
Buncombe County's Short-Term Rental Ad Hoc Committee, which had been expected to deliver policy recommendations by late 2024, indefinitely postponed further meetings after Hurricane Helene, shelving additional STR restrictions to focus on disaster recovery.
Sources
Every rule above links to one of these
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This page is general information compiled from official 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.