Vacohost

    Georgia

    Union County, Georgia short-term rental rules

    Overview

    Union County governs short-term rentals in unincorporated areas around Blairsville, including much of the inventory near Vogel State Park and Brasstown Bald. The City of Blairsville is separate. Because a large share of Union County inventory sits on well and septic with steep access, occupancy and access questions are the practical ones to resolve first.

    Areas covered: Unincorporated Union County, Cabin inventory around Blairsville outside the city limits · Last verified

    Verified requirements for Union County, Georgia

    Each item below was read from the official document cited with it. Nothing here is generic guidance.

    1. permit

      An STR license from Union County is required to operate or advertise a short-term rental; the license holder must be the property owner.

      Source: Union County Short-Term Rental Ordinance, Ch. 60 (opens in a new tab) · Sec. 60-5 · Verified

    2. capsZoning

      Total STR licenses in Union County are capped at no more than 5% of total housing units countywide, per the tax assessor's annual count.

      Source: Union County Short-Term Rental Ordinance, Ch. 60 (opens in a new tab) · Sec. 60-7(a) · Verified

    3. taxes

      Union County levies a 5% excise tax on gross rent for lodging accommodations, per O.C.G.A. 48-13-51.

      Source: Union County Short-Term Rental Ordinance, Ch. 60 (opens in a new tab) · Sec. 60-3 · Verified

    4. inspections

      The code enforcement officer may schedule an inspection of the STR for compliance upon receipt of an initial or renewal license application.

      Source: Union County Short-Term Rental Ordinance, Ch. 60 (opens in a new tab) · Sec. 60-6 · Verified

    5. localContact

      Owners must designate a local registered agent available 24/7 who must respond to violations within two hours.

      Source: Union County Short-Term Rental Ordinance, Ch. 60 (opens in a new tab) · Sec. 60-8(3) · Verified

    6. renewal

      STR licenses expire July 31 each year and must be renewed annually; a $75 penalty applies to late renewals after August 31.

      Source: Union County Short-Term Rental Ordinance, Ch. 60 (opens in a new tab) · Sec. 60-5(2),(6) · Verified

    7. advertising

      The STR license number and permitted occupancy must be listed in all short-term rental advertisements, digital or print.

      Source: Union County Short-Term Rental Ordinance, Ch. 60 (opens in a new tab) · Sec. 60-8(9) · Verified

    8. occupancyParking

      Overnight occupancy is based on the number of bedrooms permitted by the on-site septic permit as approved by county Environmental Health.

      Source: Union County Short-Term Rental Ordinance, Ch. 60 (opens in a new tab) · Sec. 60-8(10) · Verified

    9. minimumStay

      A short-term rental is defined as a lodging accommodation rented to transient guests for a period not exceeding 30 consecutive days.

      Source: Union County Short-Term Rental Ordinance, Ch. 60 (opens in a new tab) · Sec. 60-2 · Verified

    10. enforcement

      It is unlawful to operate or advertise an STR without a valid license; an STR Board and STR officer administer citations and enforcement.

      Source: Union County Short-Term Rental Ordinance, Ch. 60 (opens in a new tab) · Sec. 60-5, 60-7(e) · Verified

    Regulation research score

    How far the short-term-rental rules we confirmed from cited official sources for Union County, Georgia constrain an ordinary non-owner-occupied, whole-home short-term rental, expressed on a 0–100 burden scale built from 12 weighted criteria in two dimensions: market access and operating compliance. Higher means more constrained. It is not a legal conclusion, a permissiveness rating, a market rating, a measure of desirability, legality or profitability, and not investment advice.

    High access constraints· 79/100 (range 79–100)· High confidence

    Major eligibility or supply barriers are documented — narrow zoning, hard caps or waitlists, discretionary conditional-use approval, severe spacing, or entity limits — so entry depends on more than completing paperwork.

    No severe market-access trigger is documented, so this jurisdiction is capped below the effectively-restricted band. A major access constraint is documented, which makes the high-access band available. Access sub-score 65, operating sub-score 100.

    Based on 92% evidence coverage across the 12-criterion rubric.

    Market access and eligibility · 65 of 100

    • Zoning eligibility, caps, density or spacingMajor access constraint · 65

      Total licences are capped at 5% of countywide housing units, a hard supply limit on new entry.

    • Minimum or maximum stayNo access effect (definitional or permissive) · 0

      A 30-day definition of the regulated use.

    Operating and compliance · 100 of 100

    • Permit, licence, or registration22 pts
    • Inspection or life-safety certification16 pts
    • Occupancy and parking14 pts
    • Enforcement and penalties14 pts
    • Local responsible party12 pts
    • Renewal or transfer10 pts
    • Advertising and listing rules7 pts
    • Lodging tax or fees5 pts

    Operating rules are weighted at 0.45, so compliance requirements alone cannot push a jurisdiction past Moderate / structured.

    Burden estimate
    79 of 100 · High access constraints
    Uncertainty interval
    79–100 of 100
    Evidence coverage
    92% · 11 of 12 criteria resolved
    Confidence
    High
    Last reviewed

    High confidence: 92% of the rubric is resolved against cited official sources. The observed estimate of 79 could still rise to 100 if the remaining criteria turn out to apply.

    This range crosses more than one burden category (High access constraints, Very high / effectively restricted). The single estimate above is indicative only — do not read it as a precise measurement of this jurisdiction's rules.

    11 of 12 rubric criteria resolved against cited official sources.

    Why this score

    Market-access findings are graded severe, major, moderate or none from the cited official claim itself; the most severe finding scores in full and each additional finding adds a quarter of its points, so correlated restrictions are never double-counted. The operating sub-score is a weighted count out of 100 and is multiplied by 0.45, which is why routine permitting, inspection, contact, tax and enforcement rules alone cannot exceed the Moderate / structured band. An unresolved criterion is never recorded as 'not required' and never scored as zero: it enters the central estimate at a quarter of its worst case and reaches its full worst case at the top of the published interval, but it can never release the gates that open the high-access or effectively-restricted bands — those read confirmed findings only. Every result therefore ships as estimate, interval, evidence coverage and confidence together.

    • Prohibition or closed entry25.00 pts (range 0–100 of 100)

      Not confirmed either way. It is never recorded as "not required" and never scored as zero: it enters the estimate at 25% of its worst case and widens the upper bound by up to 100 access points. It can never on its own move this jurisdiction into a higher-access band — those gates read confirmed findings only.

    • Owner-occupancy or primary residence0.00 pts (range 0–0 of 100)

      An official source states this does not apply here, so it adds nothing at any bound.

    • Zoning eligibility, caps, density or spacing65.00 pts (range 65–65 of 65)

      Confirmed by a cited official source and graded major access constraint (65 access points). Total licences are capped at 5% of countywide housing units, a hard supply limit on new entry.

    • Minimum or maximum stay0.00 pts (range 0–0 of 35)

      Confirmed by a cited official source and graded no access effect (definitional or permissive) (0 access points). A 30-day definition of the regulated use.

    • Permit, licence, or registration22.00 pts (range 22–22 of 22)

      Confirmed by a cited official source, so it scores its full 22 of 100 operating points.

    • Inspection or life-safety certification16.00 pts (range 16–16 of 16)

      Confirmed by a cited official source, so it scores its full 16 of 100 operating points.

    • Occupancy and parking14.00 pts (range 14–14 of 14)

      Confirmed by a cited official source, so it scores its full 14 of 100 operating points.

    • Enforcement and penalties14.00 pts (range 14–14 of 14)

      Confirmed by a cited official source, so it scores its full 14 of 100 operating points.

    • Local responsible party12.00 pts (range 12–12 of 12)

      Confirmed by a cited official source, so it scores its full 12 of 100 operating points.

    • Renewal or transfer10.00 pts (range 10–10 of 10)

      Confirmed by a cited official source, so it scores its full 10 of 100 operating points.

    • Advertising and listing rules7.00 pts (range 7–7 of 7)

      Confirmed by a cited official source, so it scores its full 7 of 100 operating points.

    • Lodging tax or fees5.00 pts (range 5–5 of 5)

      Confirmed by a cited official source, so it scores its full 5 of 100 operating points.

    What we could not confirm — and what to ask

    We found no official source resolving these 1 criteria either way. They are not treated as “not required” and are not scored as zero. Confirm each one with the department listed below before you rely on it.

    • Prohibition or closed entry — unknown; could add 0–100 points.

    The rubric

    How the category is set on the 0–100 scale: 80+ reads very high / effectively restricted and requires a documented severe market-access trigger; 60–79 reads high access constraints and requires a documented major access constraint (or two moderate ones); 40–59 reads moderate / structured, which is the ceiling for jurisdictions whose confirmed rules are operating requirements only; 20–39 reads lower regulatory burden; below 20 reads minimal STR-specific burden located. A documented official-source search that resolves criteria and finds no short-term-rental-specific requirement reads “no local STR-specific regulation located in reviewed official sources” — which is not a statement that operating here is unrestricted, legal, or low-risk. Unconfirmed criteria never count as permissive. How to confirm the rest yourself.

    Who to ask in Union County, Georgia

    Department-level contact details as published on the jurisdiction’s own website. We do not publish individual staff contact information.

    • Union County Commissioner's Office

      Apply for a Short-Term Rental (STR) business license and review the STR ordinance

      706-439-6004

      Published at this official page · checked

    General research checklist (not Union County, Georgia specific)

    These are the categories short-term rental owners check anywhere in the US. They are general prompts, not this jurisdiction’s ordinance.

    Occupancy limits
    Most jurisdictions tie maximum overnight occupancy to bedroom count, septic capacity, or a fixed cap. Confirm the current figure for your specific parcel with Union County before advertising a sleeping capacity.
    Parking
    On-site parking counts and prohibitions on street or shoulder parking are among the most commonly enforced short-term rental provisions. Verify the required count with Union County and state it plainly in your listing.
    Life-safety requirements
    Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, fire extinguishers, egress, and posted evacuation information are typical requirements. Some jurisdictions inspect; others self-certify. Verify which applies.
    Local responsible party
    Many ordinances require a named local contact who can respond to the property within a set time. Confirm whether a contact is required, what response window applies, and how it must be filed with Union County.
    Renewal and enforcement
    Registrations and permits generally renew on a fixed cycle, and enforcement is usually complaint-driven with escalating penalties. Confirm the renewal date, fee, and enforcement process with Union County.
    Lodging and sales tax
    State and local lodging or occupancy taxes may be collected by the booking platform, by you, or split. Confirm current collection responsibility with both the taxing authority and your platform — platform collection agreements change.

    Confirm these directly — we could not verify them

    We publish gaps rather than guesses. The following were not confirmable from a current official source at our last review.

    • Current county registration or permitting requirement, if any
    • Occupancy limits tied to septic capacity
    • Driveway, access, and emergency-vehicle requirements
    • Local responsible party requirements

    Official sources

    Government sources only. If a link has moved, go to the jurisdiction’s main site and search for short-term or vacation rentals.

    Change log

    • — Entry published. Official source links checked; no jurisdiction-specific ordinance text confirmed.

    Operating a rental here?

    Compliance is the owner’s responsibility in every model, including ours. What a co-host can do is keep the listing, messaging, and pricing consistent with the rules you confirm.

    North Georgia co-hosting guideCompare management costs

    Nearby jurisdictions

    Found a change in Union County, Georgia?

    Send the official link and we'll re-verify this entry. We'd rather correct it than leave a stale requirement up.

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