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Regulating Airbnb Rentals through
Zoning in Connecticut
By: Julia Singer Bansal, Associate Analyst
September 28, 2018
|
2018-R-0200
Issue
In the context of zoning regulations, do Airbnb rentals differ from traditional bed and breakfasts?
Provide examples of how Connecticut municipalities are regulating Airbnb rentals.
Summary
Airbnb is a platform that allows property owners to rent out rooms, suites, or entire dwellings,
generally on a short-term basis (i.e., for fewer than 30 days). According to slides from a 2017
Connecticut Bar Association presentation, municipalities across the country use a variety of
techniques to control Airbnb rentals, including:
1. durational caps on rentals;
2. caps on the number of days property may be rented during the year;
3. density controls;
4. special permit requirements;
5. parking requirements;
6. neighbor notification;
7. owner-occupancy requirements; and
8. distinguishing between single-family, multifamily, and mixed-use neighborhoods (Id. at slide
69).
To research how Airbnb rentals are regulated in Connecticut, we reviewed information available
through the Connecticut Planning Professionals listserv, a UConn-managed discussion forum for
land use professionals. We also directly contacted certain municipalities for more information.
September 28, 2018
Page 2 of 4
We identified only one Connecticut municipality, Hartford, that adopted a zoning regulation
specifically regulating short-term rentals like Airbnb rentals. We provide a summary of the city’s
regulation below.
In other municipalities, hosted Airbnb rentals are often treated like bed and breakfasts (e.g.,
Canton, Kent, Newington, and Woodstock) or boarding houses (e.g., Canton and Kent). We found
that zoning regulations generally did not address unhosted rentals (i.e., renting an entire property to
guests); (but Hartford’s regulation applies to hosted and unhosted rentals). Below, in Table 1, we
provide (1) six examples of how zoning regulations apply to Airbnb rentals in Connecticut
municipalities and (2) the municipality’s definition of bed and breakfast, if one exists.
Hartford’s Short-Term Rental Regulation
Hartford’s short-term rental regulation requires operators to obtain a zoning permit before offering
short-term rentals and establishes limitations related to (1) rental frequency and rental length, (2)
owner-occupancy, (3) maximum number of guests, and (4) rentals that become a nuisance to
neighbors. The regulation defines short-term rentals as “[t]he temporary rental of part or all of a
property to any temporary renters for no more than 21 cumulative days during any 6 month period,
with no property being used for such temporary rental more than 3 times during any 6 month
period.”
Under the regulation, no more than four adults, in addition to related minor children, may use a
single dwelling unit as a short-term rental at the same time. The regulation sets minimum usable
floor area requirements of 70 square feet for one person and 50 square feet for each additional
person, including children age one or older. The property owner must host any short-term rentals
operated on a lot with only a single-family home or in a single-family home district.
The regulation specifies that short-term rental operators must obtain a zoning permit from the city;
permits are valid for three years. A special permit from the zoning commission is required if an
operator seeks to exceed the regulation’s default frequency and cumulative rental period limits.
The city’s zoning administrator may revoke a zoning permit or special permit if he or she learns that
the rental has become a nuisance to neighbors (Hartford Zoning Regs § 3.5.1(E)).
September 28, 2018
Page 3 of 4
Regulation of Airbnb Rentals in Select Municipalities
Table 1: Select Municipalities’ Definition of “Bed and Breakfast” and Regulation of Airbnb Rentals
Bed and Breakfast, as Defined in Zoning Regulations
Regulation of Airbnb Rentals
Canton
“Overnight accommodations and a morning meal in a
dwelling unit (B & B) provided to transients for
compensation” (two types: minor and major)
Regs § 2.2
Minor (permitted as of right in residential zones): owner
lives on the lot; limited to threeguests; rented rooms
must be accessed from within the structure; structure
must meet lot area and dimensional requirements for
the district; rented rooms cannot have cooking facilities
Regs § 3.3.B
Major (permitted with zoning commission’s site plan
and special permit approval): operator lives on the lot;
structure must meet lot area and dimensional
requirements for the district; rented rooms cannot have
cooking facilities; adequate water and sewage
disposal; compatible with the character of the
surrounding area; complies with any parking screening
requirements; structure is approved by Fire Marshal
and Building Official; may provide other services (e.g.,
banquet facilities, massages, restaurant)
Regs § 3.3.D
According to the Planning and
Community Development Department,
Airbnb rentals generally are regulated
as bed and breakfasts or boarding
houses
A boarding house is permitted with
the zoning commission’s site plan and
special permit approval in residential
districts; defined as “[a]n owner
occupied dwelling that provides for
the renting of rooms or board to not
more than three (3) paying guests,
other than members of the owner’s
family”
Regs § 2.2
Bed and breakfasts require a zoning
enforcement official-issued permit
and zoning commission’s site plan
approval in business and industrial
districts
Regs § 4.1.B.5
Hartford
“A facility providing temporary lodging to the general public
consisting of no more than 6 sleeping rooms with daily
room cleaning services, without in-room kitchen facilities,
in either an owner-occupied principal structure or in a
principal structure on the same lot of an owner-occupied
accessory structure”
Regs § 3.3.1(B)
Among other requirements, a bed and breakfast must be
located in a structure that is at least 75 years old, serve
breakfast, and give guests access to guestrooms via a
common space, not a separate exterior entrance
Regs § 3.3.1(B)
Airbnb rentals are generally regulated
under the city’s short-term rental
provision, summarized above
Fairfield
None
Regulations allow property owners in
most residential districts to take on
up to two boarders, but lease period
must be at least 30 days (in one
residential district, a special permit is
required before boarders can be
taken on)
Regs §§ 31.2.19, 5.1.2, 10.4, 11.1.2
Table 1 (continued)
September 28, 2018
Page 4 of 4
Bed and Breakfast, as Defined in Zoning Regulations
Regulation of Airbnb Rentals
Kent
“A single-family dwelling in which the owner resides and in
which sleeping accommodations and breakfast (but no
other meals) may be provided to guests for compensation”
Regs § 2200
Depending on the zone, bed and breakfasts may have a
maximum of three to six guest rooms; sanitarian or sewer
commission must certify that water and sewerage systems
are adequate; screening may be required to create a buffer
from neighboring uses
Regs § 6300
According to the Land Use
Department, Airbnb rentals are not
regulated if they are unhosted rentals;
if the rental is hosted and breakfast is
served, a special permit for a bed and
breakfast is required; a special permit
for a boarding house is required for
other hosted rentals
A boarding house is “[a] single-family
dwelling in which the owner resides
and in which rooms may be let and
board may be furnished to not more
than six individuals in addition to the
owner's family”
Regs § 2200
Newington
None
According to the Town Planner’s
Office, neither bed and breakfasts nor
Airbnb rentals are permitted in
residential zones
Woodstock
“[A] dwelling, in which lodging and meals are offered or
provided for compensation to one to twelve persons for
limited periods of time not exceeding 30 consecutive days;
the owner shall live on the property”
Regs Art. II, Definitions
According to the Town Zoning Office,
Airbnb rentals are considered to be
bed and breakfasts and thus must
obtain a zoning (home occupation)
permit
Requirements for home occupations
include: (1) no more than half of the
finished floor area of a dwelling unit
may be used for the occupation and
(2) the occupation is incidental and
secondary to the residential use of the
lot
Regs Art. VI, § E
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