Where short-term rentals are allowed in Chattanooga, TN
Zoning decides where you may host in Chattanooga, and you need a city certificate to operate legally. If documents or fees are still missing when the application window closes, the city rejects it. A certificate can pass to a new owner of the same property but never moves to a different address.[5]
Every rule below links to the official source it comes from, verified October 2, 2026.
Can you rent short term in Chattanooga?
Your zoning decides
What you apply for: Short-Term Vacation Rental certificate
- Seasonal homes
- 805
- Housing units
- 87,970
- Residents
- 185,783
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates
- City ruleAllowed by zone
- City fee$250
- Tax on each staySet locally
- Seasonal homes9 per 1,000
Chattanooga short-term rental rules
Chattanooga requires a short-term vacation rental certificate for every host or property owner, and sorts applicants by whether they live in the property. A homestay is a primary residence you occupy at least 183 days a year. The fee is $250 to apply and $250 to renew. A homestay is allowed in commercial zones that permit absentee designations and within the designated STVR homestay overlay. An absentee rental, where the property is not your home, costs $500 to apply for and $500 to renew. Absentee rentals are allowed only in commercial zones that permit a hotel or motel use. Check the zoning before anything else. The Board of Zoning Appeals cannot grant a certificate in a zone where the use is not allowed, nor waive the 25% density cap. Applications have a strict sixty-day lifespan, and the certificate must be posted inside the rental. After a rezoning, you cannot apply for an absentee certificate for eighteen months.[5]
What Chattanooga asks of you
Every host or property owner must hold a valid short-term vacation rental certificate to operate legally in the city.[5]
A homestay is a primary residence you live in at least 183 days a year, allowed in commercial zones that permit absentee designations and within the designated homestay overlay. An absentee rental is allowed only in commercial zones that permit a hotel or motel use.[5]
Homestay fees are $250 to apply and $250 to renew. Absentee fees are $500 and $500.[5]
An application has a strict sixty-day lifespan: submit every document, pay the fees and answer staff within that window, or the application is rejected and you start again.[5]
The certificate must be posted in a permanent, intentional manner in a conspicuous place inside the rental, and it has to be the current active one.[5]
After a rezoning, the owner cannot apply for an absentee certificate for eighteen months from the effective date of the rezoning ordinance.[5]
A certificate can be transferred to a new owner of the same property, but never to a different address.[5]
What Tennessee asks wherever you host
These rules apply at this address whatever the city decides.
Tennessee's definition covers a residential dwelling rented for a fee, in whole or in part, for under thirty continuous days. Hotels fall outside it, as do bed-and-breakfast establishments.[1]
A local ordinance passed after a property began operating as a short-term rental does not reach that property. The rules in place when it started keep governing it. A sale or other transfer ends that protection. Thirty continuous months without rental use end it as well. Three separate breaches of a generally applicable local law have the same effect.[1]
A city with a permit or application process may suspend a property's use while it lacks a permit. That power holds only when the city's requirements are reasonable.[1]
What a guest pays on top of your nightly rate in Chattanooga
Each layer is set by a different authority, and not all of them are collected by the platform.
| Layer | Rate | Remitted to |
|---|---|---|
| Tennessee state sales tax[3] | 7% | The state revenue department |
| Local sales tax[4] | 2.25% | The state revenue department |
| City room occupancy tax[2] | Not published | The city |
A Tennessee city levies its room occupancy tax by ordinance, and the rate may not exceed four percent where it rests on T.C.A. § 67-4-1402. Where the tax was levied after July 1, 2021, the revenue must fund tourism promotion.[2]
What the census counts
How much of Chattanooga is already a second home
The Census Bureau counts 805 of Chattanooga's 87,970 homes as vacant for seasonal, recreational or occasional use. That is 9 out of every 1,000. It ranks Chattanooga 6th of the 9 Tennessee cities on this site for the share of its housing stock kept for part-year use.
- Rank in the state
- 6th of 9
- Share of housing
- 9 per 1,000
- Median home value
- $283,200
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates, tables B25004, B25001, B01003 and B25077.
Nearby and comparable
Where Chattanooga sits among its neighbors
Nashville, TN
Restricted by zone
If you live in the home, apply for an owner-occupied permit. New non-owner-occupied permits are not issued in AR2A, R, RS or RM zones.
Nashville short-term rental rulesBristol, TN
No city ordinance
216 seasonal homes, 16 per 1,000 housing units.
Bristol short-term rental rulesKnoxville, TN
Permit required
851 seasonal homes, 9 per 1,000 housing units.
Knoxville short-term rental rulesKingsport, TN
No city ordinance
546 seasonal homes, 20 per 1,000 housing units.
Kingsport short-term rental rulesFAQ
Chattanooga short-term rental questions
What does a Chattanooga short-term rental certificate cost?
Can I run an absentee rental in a Chattanooga residential zone?
How long does the application stay open?
Sources
- Public Chapter 972, Acts of 2018, the Short-Term Rental Unit Act, Tennessee Secretary of State, read on September 20, 2026
- Room Occupancy Tax, municipal finance reference, Municipal Technical Advisory Service, University of Tennessee, read on September 20, 2026
- Taxation of Short-Term Rental Units, June 2026, Tennessee Department of Revenue, read on October 2, 2026
- Tennessee sales tax rate file, fourth quarter 2026 (TNR2026Q4AUG21), Tennessee Department of Revenue, through the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, read on October 2, 2026
- Apply for Short-Term Vacation Rental Certificate, City of Chattanooga, read on September 20, 2026
This page is not legal advice. It summarizes the official sources listed on this page as they read on October 2, 2026. Rules can change after that date, so check with the issuing office before you apply or publish a listing.
Before you list
Free tools for new hosts
Short-term rental agreement generator
Parties, dates, rent, deposit checked against your state's cap, and the house rules clauses you enforce. A signed-ready PDF for direct and Vrbo bookings.
Airbnb host fee calculator
What Airbnb's 15.5% single fee takes from a booking, and the nightly rate that keeps your payout after the split fee.
Airbnb income calculator
Nightly rate, occupancy, Airbnb fee, management, mortgage, taxes and depreciation. You get cash flow, cash-on-cash return and what is left after the IRS.
Airbnb cleaning checklist generator
Build a printable turnover checklist by room, with restock, photos to take and a place for the cleaner to sign. Free PDF, no sign-up.