Short-term rentals in Dawsonville, explained properly.

Article XI says the application fee, annual license fee, late charge and appeal fee are set in Sec. 2-110 as modified by the mayor and city council from time to time, and a license applied for or issued after July 1 of a calendar year is prorated at one-half of the annual fee. The City's license application form lists the amounts above, but it carries no effective date and Sec. 2-110 was not fetched, so the amounts are not confirmed against a dated fee schedule. Sec. 8-706 also says the square footage of the rented space is used to calculate the annual fee, while the form shows flat amounts; the two were not reconciled. Ask the City Planning and Zoning Department for the current amount.

Current licensees receive a renewal package by November 1 of each year, and it is the licensee's responsibility to return the renewal paperwork to the director or designee by November 20 (the following Monday if November 20 falls on a weekend). A renewal and fee not submitted by 4:00 p.m. on November 20 pays a late charge set in Sec. 2-110. Late applications are processed on receipt but are not guaranteed renewal before January 1, and if the license is not renewed before January 1 the licensee shall suspend all renting until the renewal license is issued. An application received after 4:00 p.m. on December 20 (or the following Monday) is treated as an initial application. A license applied for or issued after July 1 pays one-half of the annual fee.

Applications are on the director's form, sworn and signed before a notary public or other officer authorized to administer oaths, and come with a non-refundable application fee set in Sec. 2-110. They list the owner(s) of record, the property address, the agent's 24-hour contact information, the owner's sworn acknowledgement of the article, the number and location of parking spaces, the owner's agreement to use best efforts to avoid disrupting the neighborhood, and the names and addresses of all adjoining landowners of record, who receive notice of the application. Attached to the application: proof of current ownership, proof of insurance indicating the premises is used as a short-term rental, and a written certification from the agent that he or she agrees to perform the duties in the article.

Sec. 8-704 puts the duty on the owner, applicant and licensee to notify the City of any material change to information listed on the application within three business days of the change, unless the article says otherwise. A change of the short-term rental agent does not take effect until notice has been provided to the City (Sec. 8-705(d)).

A person aggrieved by the director's decision to revoke, suspend or deny a license may appeal to the mayor and city council by a written appeal to the city clerk within 30 calendar days of the adverse action, with the appeal fee set in Sec. 2-110. The mayor and city council consider the appeal within 30 days after receipt and give written notice of the hearing. Their decision is final unless appealed to the superior court of the county within 30 days of the director's written notice of the decision, by writ of certiorari.

Sec. 8-705 requires the owner to designate a short-term rental agent on the license application. A property owner may serve as the agent; otherwise the agent is a natural person over the age of 18. The definition in Sec. 8-700(9) says the agent is available and responsive to contact at all times and is customarily present at a location within the city for purposes of transacting business. Duties: be reasonably available for problems, appear on the premises within two hours following City notification of issues with use or occupancy, accept service of any notice of violation, and monitor the unit for compliance. Failure to appear in time on two or more complaints within one year may be grounds for penalties. There is one agent per property at a time, and the owner changes the agent by written notice to the director.

This is the limit for short-term home rentals under Sec. 8-708(b). The article's example: a five-bedroom house has a daytime maximum (8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.) of 12 short-term rental occupants and 12 guests, a total of 24 persons. Other classes have their own rules: a bed and breakfast establishment has a maximum of six guest rooms and two persons per guest room, and a hotel's maximum occupancy is determined by the county fire marshal (Sec. 8-708(a), (c)).

Sec. 8-708(b)(3) applies to short-term home rentals and Sec. 8-708(a)(3) to bed and breakfast establishments. The license application asks for the number and location of parking spaces allotted to the premises.

Sec. 8-708 says the property owner and/or short-term rental agent shall provide and publish rules and regulations for short-term rental occupants to view for a short-term home rental, and the operator shall do the same for a bed and breakfast establishment, in order to promote compliance with the article.

Sec. 8-708(d)(1) applies to dwelling units and lodging rooms of all hotels, short-term home rentals and bed and breakfast establishments.

Sec. 11-60 requires every operator of a hotel in the City to register with the city clerk on the clerk's form, with a separate registration for each place of business, and Sec. 11-61 has the clerk issue a certificate of authority to collect the tax without charge. Sec. 11-58 makes the operator responsible for collecting the tax from occupants. Sec. 11-62 makes the tax due monthly on or before the twentieth day, with a return for the preceding monthly period showing gross rent, rent from permanent residents, taxable rent and tax due. Sec. 11-63 allows a collection deduction of one-half of one percent of the portion of the tax exceeding $3,000.00. Late payments bear interest of one and one-half percent per month, and the article sets civil penalties (Sec. 11-66). Operators keep records for at least three years (Sec. 11-65). Whether a short-term rental owner counts as an "operator" of a "hotel" for these steps rests on Sec. 8-708(d)(2),.

Sec. 8-709(d) says citations for ordinance violations are punishable under Sec. 1-8, as well as by suspension or revocation of a license as determined by the director. Sec. 8-703(b) makes false statements in the application or a violation of the article grounds for revocation, suspension and/or penalties, including denial of future applications. The director notifies the owner of each instance where guest nuisance behavior or the agent's conduct results in a citation (Sec. 8-709(a)). Sec. 1-8 was not fetched, so no fine amounts are stated here.

Sec. 8-709(b): the director keeps a file for each short-term rental location with all code violation charges, founded accusations and convictions, and counts violations whether incurred by the owner, agent or occupants. Sec. 8-709(c): if the owner has been cited and found in violation of any zoning, building, health or safety code provision, the license is immediately suspended, and the owner must show compliance with the applicable code before reinstatement or a later annual license. A suspension, revocation or denial can be appealed (see Appeals).

Georgia charges sales tax on accommodations. The state rate is 4%, and each county adds its own local sales taxes; the Georgia Department of Revenue publishes the combined rate for every county in a quarterly rate chart.

Georgia charges a $5.00 State Hotel-Motel Fee for each night an accommodation is rented, including short-term rentals. It is a flat amount per night, not a percentage of the rent, and is collected from the guest.

The $5 state fee does not apply once a stay becomes an extended stay: from the 31st day of uninterrupted occupancy by the same guest, the fee is no longer collected. If the guest checks out and checks back in, the count starts again.

If you list your home with an online booking platform that handles payment (a "marketplace innkeeper"), the platform must collect and remit the state hotel-motel fee for each night of those stays. For stays you book yourself, you collect and remit the fee.

Owners who collect the state hotel-motel fee must register on the Georgia Tax Center for a sales tax number and a state hotel-motel fee number, and file the fee return electronically by the 20th of the following month. A return is due every month, even when no rooms were rented and even if sales tax is filed quarterly or yearly.