Buncombe County

Operating rules

Primary residence

No

Min stay (nights)

—

Max nights / year

—

Max occupancy

—

Zoning-restricted

Yes

Cap on licenses

No

Zoning: Vacation rentals (1–2 units, <9,000 sq ft combined) are marked P (Permitted) in the Sec. 78-641 Table 1 permitted-use table in every Buncombe County zoning district — R-LD, R-1, R-2, R-3, NS, CS, EMP, PS, CR, BDM and OU — and are blank (not permitted) only in AI (Airport Industry District). The AI district 'shall exist only in areas below 2,500' in elevation' and covers airport/aviation/aerospace uses around Asheville Regional Airport. Vacation rentals are likewise P in the Steep Slope/High Elevation Overlay and Protected Ridge Overlay permitted-use tables. A vacation rental COMPLEX (3–10 units, or 1–2 units over 9,000 sq ft) is far more restricted: allowed as a Conditional/Special Use only in BDM, R-3, NS, CS, EMP, PS, CR and OU, and not at all in R-LD, R-1 or R-2. County zoning has no jurisdiction inside incorporated municipalities (City of Asheville, Black Mountain, Weaverville, etc.), which regulate STRs separately and far more strictly.

• NO primary-residence or owner-occupancy requirement exists in the current ordinance. The Sec. 78-581 definition of 'vacation rental' contains no residency condition, and the County's vacation-rental information sheet answers 'WHAT CAN YOU RENT?' with 'Single or multi-family homes / Basement apartments / Garage apartments / Manufactured homes' without any owner-occupancy qualifier. (This is negative evidence — no quote affirmatively states 'owner occupancy is not required'.) Note the DEFERRED 2024 text amendment would have restricted STRs to detached single-family dwellings and barred them in manufactured home parks.
• MINIMUM STAY — set to null deliberately. The Sec. 78-581 definition covers homes 'rented for two (2) days or more to tourists, vacationers, or similar transients', and the County's information sheet renders this as 'Rented for 2 - 29 days'. This is a DEFINITIONAL SCOPE for what counts as a vacation rental use, not an express minimum-stay mandate; the ordinance nowhere states that a 1-night rental is prohibited. A 1-night rental would arguably fall outside the defined 'vacation rental' use, but no quote confirms how the County treats it. Do not represent a hard 2-night floor without confirming with Planning & Development.
• MAXIMUM STAY — the ordinance definition states no upper bound; the County's information sheet shows '2 - 29 days', consistent with the widely used <30-day STR working definition and with the occupancy tax exemption for stays of 90+ consecutive days. The 29-day figure is the County's own summary, not ordinance text.
• SIZE/UNIT CAP (this is the real constraint on standard STRs): a 'vacation rental' is capped at no more than TWO single-family homes with a combined total of no more than 9,000 sq ft gross floor area. Exceeding either threshold reclassifies the operation as a 'vacation rental complex', which requires a Special Use Permit and is barred from R-LD, R-1 and R-2.
• TIERING ABOVE 10 UNITS: 'A development consisting of more than 10 vacation rental units shall be considered a hotel or motel for purposes of this ordinance except within the Open Use District (OU) where it shall be considered a vacation rental complex and shall be required to obtain a conditional use permit.'
• NO CAP on the number of STR permits or licenses countywide, and no annual night limit, appears anywhere in Chapter 78 or the FY26 Fee Schedule.
• GRANDFATHERING set to null: because no restrictive STR regime has been adopted, there is currently nothing to grandfather. The deferred ZPH2023-00038 amendment contemplated that existing STRs could apply for a zoning permit to be recognized as legal nonconforming use, with that status lost on sale — but this was never enacted and carries no legal force as of July 2026.
• Occupancy tax does not apply to accommodations furnished to the same person for at least 90 consecutive days, nor to accommodations furnished by nonprofit charitable, educational, benevolent or religious organizations to further their nonprofit purpose.
• Bed and breakfast inns are a separate, distinct use in Chapter 78 ('a private, owner-occupied business with 4 to 20 guests') with their own standards and a $250 zoning fee — do not conflate with vacation rentals.

Enforcement

Active enforcement

unknown

Fines

ZONING (Chapter 78, Sec. 78-583): the County may assess a $100.00 per day civil penalty for each day a property is in violation, effective upon receipt of a Notice of Violation, but waived if the Zoning Administrator determines the violation was remedied within 30 days of receipt. A Notice of Violation must precede any other penalty and is served by certified/registered mail, personal service, or conspicuous posting on the property; it is appealable to the Board of Adjustment under Sec. 78-623. Unpaid penalties may be pursued via a civil action in the nature of a debt or referred to the State Debt Setoff program. The Zoning Administrator may reduce the penalty where the responsible person acted in good faith and cooperated. OCCUPANCY TAX (per NCGS 105-236(a)(3)-(4), as stated on the County's Monthly Remittance Form): failure to file on the due date incurs a penalty of 5% of the tax per month or fraction thereof, not exceeding 25% in aggregate; failure to pay when due without intent to evade incurs a penalty of 10% of the tax.

Notes

active_enforcement is deliberately set to null — NOT false. No primary source located in this research documents a Buncombe County STR-specific enforcement program, complaint line, inspection regime, or enforcement statistics, and the absence of such evidence is not evidence of absence. Context that bears on the question: because vacation rentals are permitted by right in every district except AI-Airport, there is very little zoning-side conduct left to enforce against a compliant 1–2 unit operator — the realistic exposure is (a) operating a vacation rental without the $50 zoning permit / certificate of zoning compliance, (b) operating a de facto complex (3+ units, or over 9,000 sq ft) without a Special Use Permit, and (c) occupancy tax non-remittance on direct bookings. Occupancy tax collection is administered as a routine monthly program by Buncombe County Tax Collections with statutory penalties, which implies active administration on the tax side. The generic Sec. 78-583 penalty applies to all zoning violations and is not STR-specific. Anyone relying on this field should contact Buncombe County Planning & Development (828-250-4830) directly.