The three things to know
Homestay: a city permit ($200 plus a 6% technology fee), reviewed and inspected every year; you live there full time and are present overnight; one or two bedrooms; one per lot. Whole-home rental (STVR): only in the Resort zoning district, with off-street parking and a yearly zoning permit review.
Nothing has to be posted. The code bans signs for both: "No signage shall be allowed," and no advertising visible from outside. The card below is optional, for inside only.
6% Buncombe County occupancy tax, monthly by the 20th (sales a platform already paid go on their own line), plus 7% North Carolina sales tax in Buncombe County. Platforms that take payment collect both on their bookings.
Print the door notice
Asheville doesn't require a posted notice, and bans signs outside. If you'd like a contact card for inside the house anyway, this prints one. It's optional.
Have a /stay page on this phone? Fill the lines you already wrote there.
Type what you know. Anything left empty prints as a line to write on, so it works as a blank form too. What you type stays on this phone.
Your host
Optional. Asheville does not require a posted notice.
Prints one letter page. Keep it inside; signs visible from outside aren't allowed.
What the rules say
Homestays
"A permit is required for a homestay and the homestay must be reviewed annually and inspected."UDO sec. 7-16-1(c)(9)
- The city: a homestay is "when you rent out part of your home while you are living there," in a residential zone, "one or two bedrooms," for stays "less than 30 days."
- The operator is 18 or older, lives there full time with two proofs of residency, and is present overnight during stays. A non-resident owner applies together with the resident.
- One homestay per lot, one permit per person or household. No detached structures (unless permitted before Dec 14 2021).
- No extra off-street parking needed. Liability insurance required. The host pays occupancy and sales taxes.
- Fee (city fees manual): $200 plus a 6% technology fee. Apply and renew with the city's online forms; inspections: homestayinspections@ashevillenc.gov, 828-251-1122.
Whole-home rentals (STVR)
- The city: "STVRs are only allowed in the Resort Zoning District." The city's own use table (updated August 2026) also marks the CBD Expansion and COM Expansion districts, so check your parcel with the city.
- Stays "less than one month," lodging only; off-street parking under sec. 7-11-2; liability insurance; reviewed every year for the zoning permit (sec. 7-16-1(c)(64.1)).
- Report suspected illegal rentals through the city's app; staff work weekdays and aren't on call.
What has to be posted
Nothing. Both rules ban signs:
"No signage shall be allowed for short-term vacation rentals."UDO sec. 7-16-1(c)(64.1)(e)
"No displays of goods, products, services, or other advertising shall be visible from outside of the dwelling."UDO sec. 7-16-1(c)(9)(b)
Taxes
- Buncombe County occupancy tax: "currently 6% of the gross receipts," due by the 20th of each month. The county form has a line for "sales that a 3rd party has collected/remitted… For example, any AirBnB sales."
- North Carolina sales tax: 7% combined in Buncombe County. Whoever collects the payment (you or the booking platform) is responsible for it. Stays of 90 days or more are exempt.
House rules go in your listing
For bookings made from Nov 20 2026, Airbnb wants every house rule in the listing itself; signs in the house can only repeat them. This notice only carries what Asheville requires, so it adds no new rules. Put quiet hours, parking and the rest in your listing first.
Official sources, read Nov 11 2026
- City of Asheville: homestays
- Apply for a homestay permit
- UDO sec. 7-16-1 (code library)
- Homestay and STR violations
- City fees and charges
- Buncombe County occupancy tax form (PDF)
- NC Dept. of Revenue: sales tax rates
Plain-words summary, not legal advice. Rules and fees change, and the official page always wins. Checked Nov 11 2026.
Help us get it right
Host in Asheville? If a rule, fee or form here has changed, or we missed something, tell us. We check every note against the official source before we change a page, and we put the new checked date on it.
More free tools for hosts
- Guest guidebook: a fridge QR that opens your house notes plus live local info.
- Next Guest: a new door code for every guest, set up once.
- Checkout list check: fix your list for Airbnb's Nov 20 chore rule.
- Cleaner turnover text: one message per guest, ready to send.
- Door code times for Vrbo and Booking.com guests.
- Staff code list: cleaner and owner codes, printable.
- Restock list: count it, get the shopping list.
- Wi-Fi QR card: guests point the camera and they're online.
All free, no account. What you type stays on your phone.