Raleigh

Operating rules

Primary residence

No

Min stay (nights)

—

Max nights / year

—

Max occupancy

—

Zoning-restricted

Yes

Cap on licenses

No

Zoning: Short Term Rental is a Limited Use in R-1, R-2, R-4, R-6, R-10, RX, OX, NX, CX and DX zoning districts (Raleigh UDO Sec. 6.1.4 Allowed Principal Use Table, as amended by Ordinance No. (2021) 193 TC 444 / TC-8-20 Section 1). It is not permitted in zoning districts outside this list. In residential zoning districts, renters may not hold special events or gatherings. For single-unit and two-unit living the premise shall not be used for 'Live-Work' or a 'Day Care, Home'; the same applies to multi-unit living dwelling units.

• MAXIMUM STAY, not minimum: the STR definition caps a rental at 30 days. 'A dwelling unit that can be used for overnight lodging accommodations that is provided to renters for no longer than 30 days for compensation. A portion of or the entire dwelling unit can be used for lodging, including part or all of an accessory structure.' (Ordinance No. (2021) 193 TC 444, Sec. 6.4.6.E.1). No minimum-night requirement is imposed by the ordinance.
• NO primary-residence / owner-occupancy requirement. Ordinance TC-8-20 expressly repealed the prior owner-present 'Homestay' regime: 'AN ORDINANCE TO REPEAL HOMESTAY REGULATIONS AND REPLACE WITH REGULATIONS FOR SHORT-TERM RENTAL A TYPE OF OVERNIGHT LODGING—AND TO ALLOW SHORT TERM RENTAL IN CERTAIN ZONING DISTRICTS THAT PERMIT RESIDENTIAL USES.' Whole-house, non-owner-occupied STRs are permitted subject to the zoning permit.
• PER-BUILDING CAP in multi-unit buildings (not a citywide cap): 'For any multi-unit living use, no more than 25%, or two dwelling units, whichever is greater, may be used for short term rental in any single building.' (Sec. 6.4.6.E.2.f)
• No citywide cap on the total number of STR permits was found in Ordinance No. (2021) 193 TC 444, in UDO Sec. 6.4.6, or on the City's Short-Term Rentals permit page.
• Cooking facilities restriction: 'Cooking facilities are not permitted in any bedroom. For the purpose of this regulation, cooking facilities include any refrigerator in excess of seven cubic feet; any stovetop range that operates on 220 volt electric service; any appliance that operates on natural gas; or any cooktop, whether integrated into a countertop or a separate appliance, which contains more than two cooking surfaces or burners. This shall not prohibit cooking facilities within a one-room studio short term rental. For the purpose of this regulation, a studio shall be a single-room rental with a sleeping area, living area and kitchen/eating area in one consolidated room.' (Sec. 6.4.6.E.2.b)
• No exterior advertising: 'No exterior advertising shall be allowed.' (Sec. 6.4.6.E.2.c)
• No renter-held events in residential districts: 'In residential zoning districts, short term renters shall not utilize the premises for holding special events or gatherings.' (Sec. 6.4.6.E.2.d)
• Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) are an eligible STR type per the City's Short-Term Rental Application and Checklist (Revision 03.07.23), which lists 'Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU)' as a selectable short-term rental type alongside Single-family (whole house / partial house) and Multi-family.
• No express grandfathering clause was found in Ordinance No. (2021) 193 TC 444. The ordinance instead set a compliance runway: 'This ordinance is effective 30 days after adoption. Compliance with this ordinance is required 90 days from the effective date.' (Section 10; adopted February 2, 2021, effective March 4, 2021 -> compliance required on/about June 2, 2021). Reported as null rather than false because absence of a clause in the adopting ordinance does not conclusively rule out vested-rights treatment under UDO Article 10 or N.C.G.S. 160D-108.
• Raleigh city limits extend into both Wake County and Durham County per the Census place record ('Durham County~~~Wake County'); the overwhelming majority of the city, including the county seat function, is in Wake County, and parent_id is set to us-nc-wake. Operators in the small Durham County portion of Raleigh would be subject to Durham County's occupancy tax rather than Wake County's 6% ROT. Not verified against a primary source for this record.

Enforcement

Active enforcement

yes

Fines

Violations of UDO Sec. 6.4.6.E (Short-Term Rental) are subject to civil penalties under UDO Sec. 10.4.2: $100 per violation unless a higher amount is specified elsewhere in the UDO, plus $500 per day for each day of continuing violation after the corrective-action period expires (each day is a separate offense), plus an additional $25 penalty where the citation is not paid within the prescribed 48-hour period and civil action is instituted. The ordinance is enforced as provided in N.C.G.S. 160A-175 or the Raleigh City Code, and criminal sanctions are the maximum allowed by law notwithstanding the $50 limit in N.C.G.S. 14-4(a). Separately, the City SHALL revoke the STR permit upon written determination that a resident, resident manager and/or operator has been convicted of a 'Criminal Law' (Article 27 of Chapter 14 of the N.C. General Statutes; Article 3 of Chapter 18B; N.C.G.S. 14-71.1; N.C.G.S. 14-292) within a 365-day period on the STR premise, OR has received within a 365-day period two or more 'Verified Violations' of any combination of City Code zoning regulations, noise regulations, or nuisances prohibited by City Code section 12-6002. Once lawfully revoked, no new STR permit may be issued or reinstated for that premises for 365 days.

Notes

Enforcement is structurally active and mandatory rather than discretionary: the ordinance uses 'The City shall revoke the short-term rental permit following a written determination...' Enforcement hooks are built into the permit itself - the permit number must be posted on all advertisements and on the property, which makes unpermitted listings identifiable, and operators must retain a three-year lodger list. The two-strike 'Verified Violation' revocation trigger explicitly incorporates noise and nuisance complaints, indicating a complaint-driven enforcement model. A 'Verified Violation that is appealed continues as a verified violation unless it is overturned on appeal.' active_enforcement=true is inferred from the mandatory statutory language and the revocation machinery; no primary-source data on actual citation counts, revocation counts, or enforcement staffing was located, so the intensity of real-world enforcement is not quote-anchored.