Find out about planning approval requirements for short term rental accommodation in the shire.
Definitions
Short-Term Rental Accommodation (STRA)
(a) means a dwelling provided, on a commercial basis, for occupation under a short-term rental arrangement; but
(b) does not include a dwelling that is, or is part of, any of the following —
(i) an aged care facility as defined in the Land Tax Assessment Act 2002 section 38A(1);
(ii) a caravan park;
(iii) a lodging-house as defined in the Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1911 section 3(1);
(iv) a park home park;
(v) a retirement village as defined in the Retirement Villages Act 1992 section 3(1);
(vi) workforce accommodation.
Hosted Short Term Rental Accommodation
means any of the following
(a) short-term rental accommodation where the owner or occupier, or an agent of the owner or occupier who ordinarily resides at the dwelling, resides at the same dwelling during the short-term rental arrangement;
(b) short-term rental accommodation that is an ancillary dwelling where the owner or occupier, or an agent of the owner or occupier who ordinarily resides at the other dwelling on the same lot, resides at that other dwelling during the short-term rental arrangement;
(c) short-term rental accommodation that is a dwelling on the same lot as an ancillary dwelling where the owner or occupier, or an agent of the owner or occupier who ordinarily resides at the dwelling, resides at the ancillary dwelling during the short-term rental arrangement.
Unhosted Short Term Rental Accommodation
means short-term rental accommodation that —
(a) is not hosted short-term rental accommodation; and
(b) accommodates a maximum of 12 people per night.
The Shire’s view on STRA
The use of a dwelling for hosted STRA does not require development (planning) approval from the Shire.
Planning approval requirements
Planning approval is required if you intend to provide Unhosted Short Term Rental Accommodation to anyone for payment or reward.
You don’t need planning approval if you own the property but have a primary residence elsewhere and wish to use the dwelling for short stay use yourself. You may also allow friends to stay there provided there is no fee charged.
Planning applications for unhosted STRA will be assessed against the provisions of Local Panning Scheme No.1 and the Shire’s Local Planning Policy.
Unless the Shire determines otherwise, any approval granted will be for a limited period of one year, renewable by way of further application towards the expiration of that period. If the Shire has received complaints regarding the short stay use, a further approval may not be granted.
More information and contact
For more information, please contact the Shire’s Planning Team on (08) 9780 5255 or email [email protected]