Georgia Short-Term Rental Rules, City by City (Verified July 2026)

Program and regulatory figures verified July 24, 2026. Details change; confirm your scenario with us.

By Mike Certo, Cornerstone First Mortgage · NMLS #260555 · Updated July 24, 2026

Buying a short-term rental in the wrong Georgia jurisdiction is a six-figure mistake. This is the city-by-city status table we check before writing a single loan: dated, sourced, and updated when the councils move.

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The 2026 status table

Fees and statuses verified July 24, 2026 against city, county, and state sources; several of these regimes are in active litigation, council rewrite, or first-year enforcement. Confirm current rules with the jurisdiction before purchase.

There is no Georgia statewide STR law

Identical preemption bills, SB 104 and HB 109, would bar local STR bans and extend lodging taxes to every rental; both have had hearings but no votes. A separate proposal filed in November 2025 (HB 5140) would add a 3% STR excise tax subject to local voter approval. Until something passes, Georgia's cities and counties keep full control, which is why this table exists and why it carries a date. The legislature meets annually, so we re-check every session.

What taxes do Georgia Airbnb hosts pay?

Three layers. Georgia charges 4% state sales tax on lodging plus the $5-per-night state hotel-motel fee; the fee stops on the 31st consecutive night of a continuous stay, which is the tax hook behind the mid-term rental strategy. Local hotel-motel excise stacks on top: 7% in Savannah, Athens, and Tybee, roughly 8% in the Blue Ridge/Fannin cabin belt. Airbnb and VRBO collect and remit the marketplace-administered portions. For your loan, none of this reduces qualifying revenue (underwriting uses gross rent before lodging taxes), but all of it belongs in your operating model.

The pattern in the Georgia rules

Line the regimes up and a shape emerges. The big tourist cities protect neighborhoods with caps: Atlanta caps the owner (2 properties, primary residence first), Savannah caps the ward (20% and full), Tybee froze three zones and is debating an island-wide number. The college town put a clock on nonconforming operators: Athens's 711 legal-nonconforming STRs must conform by March 1, 2027. And Augusta has no dedicated STR ordinance at all, just a business license, a 120-day zoning definition, and a Masters-week hosting tradition older than Airbnb. For a buyer, the sequence is always the same: confirm the jurisdiction's current rules, then confirm the parcel's zone, then model the tax stack, and only then talk price. We run that sequence on every STR loan: how the financing works · Savannah · Atlanta · the cabin belt.

No pressure, no obligation, and no salesy follow-up: a 20-minute call with our team, real numbers, and a straight answer on whether the deal pencils.

Frequently asked questions

Is Airbnb legal in Atlanta in 2026?

Yes, with a license and a hard structural limit: the owner's primary residence must be licensed first, and one owner may license at most 2 properties. That excludes non-resident investors from licensed in-city STRs entirely. $150 application, $150 annual renewal, enforcement active since March 5, 2023 (as of July 2026).

Can I buy an Airbnb in downtown Savannah?

Effectively no right now: every listed ward in the Downtown and Victorian Historic Districts is at the 20% cap on non-owner-occupied vacation rentals, so a new applicant goes on the city's waiting list. Certificates don't transfer at sale. Owner-occupied structures and parcels outside the capped wards remain workable (as of July 2026).

Did Tybee Island cap short-term rentals?

Not finally, as of July 24, 2026. The proposed island-wide cap of 775 licenses was sent to drafting on a 4–2 council vote in March 2026 but has not been adopted. Current law bars new certificates in R-1, R-1B, and R-2 while existing holders renew, and property owners sued the city over its STR rules in January 2026.

Are short-term rentals allowed in Athens, GA?

Yes, in eligible zones under the February 2024 ordinance: home-occupation STRs (owner-occupant or long-term tenant on site) and commercial STRs in certain zones through plans review. The 711 properties finalized as legal nonconforming in March 2025 must conform by March 1, 2027. Hosts owe a business occupation tax certificate and 7% hotel-motel tax.

Does Augusta regulate Airbnb?

Barely, as of July 24, 2026: Augusta has no dedicated STR ordinance and no STR permit. Operators carry a standard business license (occupational tax certificate), and the zoning code treats stays under 120 consecutive days as short-term. That could change with one council vote, so re-check before you buy; the Masters-week rental tradition runs deep here.

Does Columbus require a short-term rental permit?

Yes: a permit for each unit plus a business license under the city's Unified Development Ordinance, occupancy capped at 2 per bedroom plus 1, a 24/7 local contact posted inside the unit, and $500K of liability insurance. Historic districts add restrictions on non-owner-occupied units. Confirm current fees on the city's schedule before you buy.

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Mike Certo · NMLS #260555 · Cornerstone First Mortgage NMLS #173855 · Equal Housing Lender. Educational content, not a loan commitment and not legal or tax advice. City STR rules, tax figures, and filing fees change; verify current requirements with the city or county, your CPA, or a Georgia real estate attorney before you buy. Loans are subject to buyer and property qualification.