City Watch
Short-term rental rules in Raleigh, NC
How Raleigh regulates short-term rentals: the rules that apply, their sources, and pending changes.
Short-term rentals here operate under a registration or permit system with ongoing operating rules.
- STR is a defined 'Short-Term Rental' use in the Raleigh Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) permitted only as a Limited Use in enumerated districts (R-1, R-2, R-4, R-6, R-10, RX, OX, NX, CX, DX) — a genuine zoning treatment, not a bare registration scheme.
- Supply-limiting device present: in a multi-unit (multifamily) building, no more than the greater of 25 percent OR two dwelling units may be used for short-term rental in any single building. This building-level cap limits how much of a structure can be converted to STR and is what pushes the rating from Regulated to Restrictive.
- Every operator must obtain a zoning permit before operating and post the permit number on all advertisements and at the property — a lawful STR-specific process/friction layer tied to zoning (this is process, not the rating lever).
- The supply cap is narrowly scoped: it binds only within a single multi-unit building; whole-home STR of a single-family dwelling is permitted with no cap, and there is no citywide numeric cap, no cross-parcel density/separation limit, and no lottery — hence intensity 'moderate', not severe.
- Enforceability caveat (published rule vs adjudicated): the 25%/2-unit cap is Raleigh's currently published, in-force rule. Schroeder v. City of Wilmington struck a Wilmington density/separation cap as beyond municipal authority, which raises a live enforceability question over Raleigh's building-level cap, but no court has adjudicated Raleigh's cap. We rate the published, operative rule and flag the caveat rather than erase the cap via a generalized Schroeder reading.
Based on: Raleigh UDO Sec. 6.4.6.E 'Short-Term Rental' use, established by text change TC-8-20 (adopted by City Council Feb 2
Summary of the rule
STR is a defined use in the UDO, permitted as a Limited Use in R-1, R-2, R-4, R-6, R-10, RX, OX, NX, CX, and DX districts.
View the ordinance source ↗✓ Verified
Active litigation / open question
Schroeder v. City of Wilmington — N.C. Ct. App., 2022-NCCOA-210, decided Apr. 5, 2022 — struck Wilmington's STR registration + 400-ft separation/density-cap/lottery as beyond municipal authority; G.S. 160D-1207(c) held to preempt STR registration requirements but NOT the authority to require zoning permits. Statewide lens; not a Raleigh suit. Bears on Raleigh's building-level 25%/2-unit cap: it raises an unadjudicated question of whether a per-building supply cap survives, but no court has ruled on Raleigh's cap, which remains the city's published in-force rule. Source ↗
Reported as fact only, reflecting the code as currently in effect — not legal advice, and not a prediction of the outcome. Verify current status before relying on it.
Last reviewed Sep 9, 2026 · Sources · Report an error
Pending legislation
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City Watch provides good-faith summaries of publicly available information as of the review date shown. Rules, enforcement, and permit availability can change, and summaries may contain errors or omissions. Ratings describe the general regulatory environment; they do not establish whether a particular property or stay is permitted. This is general information, not legal advice. Before buying, listing, or hosting, verify applicable requirements with the responsible authorities and review any HOA, condominium, deed, or lease restrictions.