Frequently Asked Questions

What is the status of the proposed short-term rentals ordinance?

The Auburn City Council amended the ordinance at its Feb. 16 meeting and will vote on the amended ordinance at its March 16 meeting. The amendments include:

• Allowing homestays — permanent residences used also as rentals — in all areas of the city except for Industrial and South College Corridor districts, which do not typically have residential uses
• Limiting the number of days a homestay can operate without the owner present from 120 to 90
• Lowering the number of substantiated complaints renters can have filed against them before losing their license from three to two
• Restricting homestays from being used for private or commercial events.

View the amended ordinance here.

What is a homestay?

The proposed ordinance defines a homestay as a homeowner’s permanent residence the he or she rents out, or rents out a portion of, as lodging. To operate a homestay, the homeowner must get a home occupation license from the City. The current ordinance would require the homeowner to live in this permanent residence for at least 180 consecutive days per year. The homeowner would not be allowed to operate the homestay for more than 90 days when the owner is not present.

What is a short-term non-primary rental?

Under the proposed ordinance, a short-term non-primary rental is not used as the owner’s permanent residence, but is instead an investment property that the owner may use as a long-term or short-term rental. In many cases this residence is someone’s second home, vacation home or game day home. A short-term non-primary rental can be leased for periods of less than 30 days at a time. The operation of a short-term non-primary rental is limited to 240 days per calendar year.

Are short-term non-primary rentals allowed in my neighborhood, per the amended ordinance?

Homestays would be allowed citywide except for in the Industrial and South College Corridor districts, which are not residential districts. If you live in a zoning district that allows up to 5 unrelated occupants per household, short-term non-primary rentals would be allowed in your neighborhood, per the current proposed ordinance. Those zones include: Urban Core, Urban Neighborhoods-East, -West and -South, Comprehensive Development District, Redevelopment District, Medium Density Redevelopment District, Corridor Redevelopment District-East, -South, -Urban and -West (east of N. Donahue Drive), and Neighborhood Redevelopment District (east of N. Donahue Drive). Short-term rentals will also be allowed in the Rural zone, which does not have an occupancy definition.

Will my neighborhood be rezoned?

No. Rezonings are not included in the proposed ordinance.

How do I determine my zoning district?

Visit the City’s interactive map and enable the Zoning Layer by opening the Layer List in the top right menu, clicking Planning Layers and then clicking Zoning Layers. You can then zoom into your address or search for your address in the search bar.

How would the regulations protect my neighborhood?

The proposed ordinance requires every short-term non-primary rental and homestay operator to get a business license and zoning certificate with the City of Auburn. The City has the ability to revoke the operator’s zoning certificate if two substantiated complaints are received by the City within a calendar year. The certificate would be revoked for the remainder of the calendar year as well as for the entire following year, and no rentals would be allowed to occur at that property.

How will the ordinance be enforced?

The ordinance would set up a two-strike system for homestays or non-primary rentals. If two substantiated complaints are received by the City within a calendar year, or if the homeowner fails to maintain compliance with the regulations, the home occupation or business license for their rental would be revoked for the remainder of that year plus the following year.

If my Homeowner’s Association prohibits short-term rentals, but the proposed ordinance allows them in my zoning district, can I operate a short-term rental?

The City does not enforce HOA covenants. Any violation of your HOA covenant would be considered a private matter between you and your HOA.

Can my temporary tenants host others at my home while renting?

The proposed ordinance requires that short-term rentals — whether operating as a homestay or non-primary rental — be used only for lodging, which includes eating and sleeping, and that only the renters may utilize the home they are renting. No private events (for example: parties, cook-outs, weddings) or commercial events or activities would be allowed.

Short-term rentals are commercial activity. Is that allowed in my neighborhood?

Business can be conducted within a neighborhood in the form of a home occupation. Home occupations are conducted within one’s residence and are secondary to the use of the home as a dwelling. They do not change the residential character or appearance of a neighborhood. Home occupations provide residents of Auburn a wide range of opportunities in the use of their residences for profitable (commercial) activities. In regards to short-term rentals, a homestay would be a home occupation and would be business conducted in a home that is used as the homeowner’s permanent residence.

The short-term non-primary rentals, which would not operate in the owner’s permanent residence, are not considered a home occupation, but would be a new special residential use. The proposed ordinance would authorize the non-primary rental use in certain zones in the City and prohibit it in others. Each zone has permitted and conditional uses that have the potential to be operated within them, with some zones only permitting residential uses, some a mix of residential and commercial and some solely industrial or commercial, among other types.