Key Takeaways

  • Chatham County approved a 120-day freeze on new short-term rental applications starting July 10, 2026
  • The freeze covers unincorporated areas around Savannah and Tybee Island under a 2021 ordinance rewrite
  • The moratorium lifts November 7, 2026, unless commissioners finalize new rules sooner

Chatham County, Georgia just froze every new short-term rental application for the next four months, effective immediately. The move follows years of resident complaints in a jurisdiction that, like other cities tightening rental oversight, has struggled to keep pace with growth in the sector.

Commissioners voted Friday to approve the 120-day pause, which halts intake of new short-term vacation rental licenses, permits and applications county-wide, according to a WSAV report.

Existing rentals and pending applications stay valid as long as they meet current licensing rules, and the freeze applies specifically to the unincorporated areas of the county surrounding Savannah and Tybee Island, a corridor where nationwide booking data has shown a market still working to find its footing.

A commissioner with a stake in the outcome

District 4 Commissioner Brian Hussey, who represents the district between Savannah and Tybee Island and disclosed he owns a short-term rental there, said the pause buys time to build rules that work for both sides of the debate.

“We realized very quickly that we needed more time to work on this, get public input, and come up with a good long term solution for everyone, both the owners of short term rentals, and the neighbors where short term rentals exist,” according to Commissioner Brian Hussey.

The county adopted its original short-term rental ordinance in 2021 and is now rewriting it after commissioners tabled earlier proposed changes in May and held a public workshop in June.

Officials plan to use the pause to gather input and weigh limits on density, occupancy and septic capacity in unincorporated neighborhoods.

Related: Three major markets tighten short-term rental rules simultaneously

Those gaps echo coverage disputes flagged by insurance brokers this summer, and listing data pulled from AirDNA or pricing tools like PriceLabs won’t offer much clarity on the corridor until the county settles its density and occupancy caps.

District 7 Commissioner Dean Kicklighter said the goal is an ordinance “fair for both the owners as well as all of the neighbors.”

Commissioners said reaching a new ordinance likely won’t take the full 120 days, though no hearing date has been set.

Operators seeking to launch new rentals in unincorporated Chatham County must wait until at least November 7, when the moratorium is set to expire, or possibly sooner if commissioners finish their rewrite ahead of schedule.

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