City Watch
Short-term rental rules in Blacksburg, VA
How Blacksburg regulates short-term rentals: the rules that apply, their sources, and pending changes.
Rules here limit which homes may operate as short-term rentals, how many, where, or for how many nights a year.
- primary-residence-only (owner must own and reside 6+ months/yr)
- owner-occupancy required to operate any STR / 'homestay'
- hard 90-night annual cap
- unhosted/whole-home ('type b') capped at 30 nights/yr
- accessory apartments barred from homestay/STR use
- annual town registration/permit + 7% transient occupancy tax
Based on: Town Code Ch. 6, Art. VI (Homestay Registration) — effective Jan 1, 2017 (Ord. 1807); owner-occupancy framework
Summary of the rule
To qualify you must (i) be the property owner and (ii) live in the home as your primary residence at least 6 months of the year; max 90 total rental nights per calendar year, of which no more than 30 may be 'type b' (owner not present, or more than 2 bedrooms rented). Annual registration required.
View the ordinance source ↗✓ Verified
Last reviewed Sep 15, 2026 · Sources · Report an error
Pending legislation
Monitoring Blacksburg · system last checked Oct 25, 2026
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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.