Is Buying a Short-Term Rental in Houston County, GA a Good Investment?

Houston County, Georgia will have three different sets of short-term rental rules in force by January 1, 2027, and which one applies to a property depends entirely on which side of a city limit line it sits. The unincorporated county, which includes Bonaire and Kathleen, has required an accommodation excise tax certificate for every rental of 30 days or less since July 1, 2025. The City of Perry regulates short-term rentals through its zoning code, with a special exception required in residential districts and a 1,000-foot separation between permitted rentals. And on October 5, 2026, the Warner Robins City Council unanimously adopted its own ordinance, effective January 1, 2027, after city officials counted roughly 200 short-term rentals operating inside the city limits.

For an investor, those three rulebooks matter more than the nightly rate. They determine whether a house can legally be rented at all, how many guests it can hold, what the owner pays in fees and lodging taxes, and, in every jurisdiction, whether the seller's permit survives the sale. It does not. In unincorporated Houston County, Warner Robins and Perry alike, a short-term rental certificate or permit belongs to the owner, not the house, so the income history on a listing belongs to the seller's permit and the buyer starts over at closing. This guide covers the demand that makes Houston County rentals work, the rules in each jurisdiction, the real operating costs, and what has to happen between contract and closing for the numbers to hold up.

Why Are Investors Looking at Short-Term Rentals in Houston County?

Two demand sources set Houston County apart from most mid-sized Georgia markets. The first is Robins Air Force Base, the largest single-site industrial complex in Georgia and the reason Warner Robins exists. When the Warner Robins City Council took up its ordinance in 2026, city officials attributed part of the growth in short-term rentals to personnel at Robins on temporary duty and to families visiting the area to look at neighborhoods before a permanent change of station. Those stays tend to be weeks rather than weekends, they recur year-round, and they do not depend on tourism, which is a different demand profile from a beach or mountain rental.

The second is the Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter in Perry, a state-owned complex of more than 1,100 acres that hosts events year-round, including the Georgia National Junior Livestock Show and the Georgia National Rodeo in February. Its largest event, the Georgia National Fair, drew a record 612,706 visitors over its 2025 run, with three record-breaking attendance nights, and the 2026 fair ran October 8 through 18. For a Perry rental, that 11-day window and the February show calendar create the kind of peak pricing that a Warner Robins rental near the base does not see, which is why the two markets attract different investors.

The third factor is location. Houston County sits on Interstate 75 roughly halfway between Atlanta and the Florida line, and Perry is a common overnight stop for travelers in both directions. Kathleen and Bonaire, both unincorporated, offer newer construction within a short drive of the base's gates. Each of these demand sources is real, and each carries a different regulatory answer, which is the subject of the next section.

Internal link note: Link "Robins Air Force Base" to the BAH post and "Georgia National Fairgrounds" to the Perry hyper-local post.

Which Short-Term Rental Rules Apply in Warner Robins, Perry, Bonaire and Kathleen?

The county ordinance does not reach inside the city limits of Warner Robins, Perry or Centerville, and no city ordinance reaches outside them. A buyer's first step is a parcel lookup to confirm which jurisdiction the address is in, because two houses a few hundred feet apart on the same road can fall under different rules. The table below summarizes the three rulebooks as they stand on the publish date.

Sources: Houston County Board of Commissioners minutes and public hearing notice (May 2025); City of Warner Robins October 5, 2026 agenda packet as reported by 13WMAZ and Strisker; City of Perry short-term rentals page and STR procedures; Georgia Department of Community Affairs hotel-motel tax rate list. Confirm current figures with each jurisdiction.

Three differences in that table change an investment decision. First, Perry is the only jurisdiction that treats a short-term rental as a zoning question. In Warner Robins and the unincorporated county, a residential house can be certified as a rental by registration alone, with no neighbor notice and no hearing. In Perry's residential districts, the application goes before the Planning Commission and then to City Council at a public hearing, and the 1,000-foot separation rule means a house near an existing permitted rental cannot be permitted at all. The city publishes a map of permitted rentals for exactly that reason, and a Perry buyer should check it before writing an offer.

Second, the county and Warner Robins ordinances are nearly identical on occupancy, which is deliberate. The 2-per-bedroom-plus-2 formula with a 15-person ceiling means a 3-bedroom house sleeps 8 overnight and a 4-bedroom sleeps 10, regardless of how many beds the owner installs. Listings that advertise higher occupancy inside those jurisdictions are out of compliance, and a buyer underwriting a purchase on the seller's advertised guest count should run the formula instead.

Third, the Warner Robins ordinance bans commercial events at short-term rentals and requires owners to give guests parking instructions before arrival. City officials said the ordinance grew out of complaints about ticketed parties and guests parking in neighbors' yards, so enforcement is likely to focus on those two issues first. Three convictions under the ordinance or the noise code within a year, three missed complaint responses, or lodging taxes left unpaid for 14 days can all lead to suspension or revocation, and a revoked address cannot be re-certified for 12 months.

Internal link note: Link "map of permitted rentals" to the Perry city STR page and "parcel lookup" to the qPublic lookup post.

What Does It Cost to Operate a Short-Term Rental in Houston County?

The certificate fees are small. The taxes are not, and they come off the top of every booking. A short-term rental anywhere in Georgia collects the 4 percent state sales tax and the $5 per night state hotel-motel fee, plus whatever local lodging or hotel-motel tax the jurisdiction levies. In unincorporated Houston County that is the 5 percent lodging tax adopted alongside the rental ordinance in 2025, filed monthly with the county finance director by the 20th of the following month, with a 3 percent collection allowance for operators who pay on time. In Warner Robins the certificate is built around the city's hotel-motel tax, which the Georgia Department of Community Affairs lists at 8 percent, and certificate holders must keep booking and tax records for three years. Perry remits its hotel-motel tax to the city Finance Director within 30 days. Airbnb and Vrbo collect and remit some Georgia taxes automatically, but local lodging taxes under a new ordinance are not always included, and the operator remains responsible for anything the platform does not file.

On top of the taxes, a Houston County operator carries the costs any landlord carries, plus the ones specific to short-stay use: furnishing, utilities and internet in the owner's name, cleaning between every stay, a local contact or property manager who can be at the door within 2 hours, platform fees, and insurance written for short-term rental use rather than a standard homeowner's policy, which generally excludes commercial lodging. Georgia's Human Trafficking Prevention Training Act, effective July 1, 2026, also requires annual training and a reporting policy for third-party managers of short-term rentals; properties managed directly and exclusively by the owner, and properties rented fewer than 15 days a year, are exempt under the enacted text. None of these costs is unique to Houston County, but together they are the reason a rental that looks profitable on gross bookings can be thin on net income.

Internal link note: Link "insurance written for short-term rental use" to the homeowners insurance post and "5 percent lodging tax" to the county short-term rental rules post.

Does the Seller's Airbnb Permit Transfer When I Buy the House?

No, in every Houston County jurisdiction. The county ordinance states that the certificate is not assignable or transferable. When a certified property is sold, the new owner may continue operating for a 30-day grace period only if a new application is filed within 7 days of the sale; otherwise the rental stops until the county issues a certificate in the buyer's name. The Perry ordinance issues the STR permit to the property owner and states that it is not transferable, and because a residential-district permit requires a special exception, the buyer of a Perry rental in an R-1 or R-2 neighborhood goes back through the Planning Commission and City Council before the first booking. The Warner Robins ordinance follows the county's structure, with certificates issued per unit to the owner or a licensed managing agent, so a buyer there should expect to apply fresh as well once the ordinance takes effect.

This is the single most important fact in the transaction, and it is routinely missed. A listing that advertises 2 years of Airbnb income is advertising the seller's history under the seller's certificate. The buyer is purchasing a house, a set of furnishings, and the right to apply. In the unincorporated county, the application window is 7 days from closing, and a buyer who does not have the local contact, the detector and extinguisher compliance, and the application ready at the closing table will lose at least part of the first month. In Perry, the special exception process is measured in weeks and includes a public hearing, and the 1,000-foot separation rule is measured from the proposed rental to any permitted rental, so a buyer cannot assume the seller's approval will be repeated.

There is a related trap for buyers of a property that has been revoked. Under the county ordinance, a revoked address cannot be re-certified for 12 months, except after an arm's length sale or a change of managing agent. The Warner Robins ordinance bars a new certificate at a revoked address for 12 months. A buyer who learns during due diligence that a property's certificate was revoked should get the revocation date and the reason in writing before deciding whether the purchase still works.

Internal link note: Link "due diligence" to the Contract to Close buyer post on the due diligence period.

Can I Use a VA Loan to Buy a Short-Term Rental in Warner Robins?

Not as a pure investment property. VA loans require the borrower to occupy the home as a primary residence, so a service member or veteran cannot use VA financing to buy a house in Warner Robins or Kathleen for the purpose of listing it on Airbnb. What VA borrowers in Houston County do, legitimately and often, is buy a home with VA financing, live in it through an assignment at Robins, and then keep it as a rental after a permanent change of station rather than selling. At that point the property becomes a long-term or short-term rental under the ordinance that applies to its address, and the owner applies for the certificate like any other operator. A VA borrower can also rent a room or a separate unit of a home they occupy, subject to the same local rules.

Buyers purchasing a short-term rental as an investment from the start generally use conventional investment-property financing or a loan underwritten on the property's projected rental income, both of which carry larger down payments and stricter reserve requirements than a primary residence loan. Lenders also look at whether the property can legally operate as a short-term rental, which is where the jurisdiction question returns: a Perry house in a residential district with no special exception is, to a lender, a house with no rental use approved. Investors should have a lender who has closed short-term rental purchases in Houston County before, and should expect the lender to ask for the certificate or permit status during underwriting.

Internal link note: Link "VA loans require the borrower to occupy" to the VA loan post and "permanent change of station" to the PCS timeline post.

What Should I Check Before Buying a Short-Term Rental in Houston County?

Beyond the ordinance itself, four things decide whether a Houston County house can operate as a short-term rental, and all four should be confirmed during the due diligence period rather than after closing.

•         Jurisdiction and zoning. Pull the parcel on the county's qPublic site to confirm whether the address is inside Warner Robins, Perry or Centerville or in the unincorporated county. For Perry, confirm the zoning district and check the city's STR map for any permitted rental within 1,000 feet.

•         Covenants and HOA rules. Many Kathleen and Bonaire subdivisions built in the last 15 years carry recorded covenants that restrict leases to a minimum term, often 6 or 12 months, or prohibit transient rental outright. The county certificate does not override a covenant, and the title search is where those restrictions appear.

•         Physical compliance. The county and Warner Robins both require working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and a charged fire extinguisher, and Perry inspects before the permit is issued. A home inspection ordered for a short-term rental purchase should check each bedroom against the ordinance, not just the general condition.

•         The local contact. All three jurisdictions require a named person who can respond in person within a reasonable time, which the county and Warner Robins define as 2 hours. An out-of-town investor needs that person identified and willing before closing, because the application requires their name, phone and email, and the county revokes after 3 failures to respond in 12 months.

One more timing point. County certificates and Warner Robins certificates expire every December 31. A buyer closing in November on a county-certified property will apply for a certificate that is valid for a few weeks and then renew it, and a buyer closing in Warner Robins before January 1, 2027 will apply under a brand-new program whose application opening date the city had not announced when this was written. Neither is a reason to wait, but both are reasons to build the paperwork into the closing timeline.

Internal link note: Link "recorded covenants" to the HOA and covenants post and "home inspection" to the Contract to Close inspection post.

For Sellers: Can I Sell My Airbnb in Houston County as an Income Property?

Yes, but the income history is a marketing point, not a transferable asset. Under the county, Warner Robins and Perry rules, the certificate or permit ends with the sale, so what a seller is conveying is the house, the furnishings if they are included in the contract, and a track record the buyer can use to project their own numbers after they obtain their own certificate.

When I list a home that has operated as a short-term rental, I treat the compliance file as part of the listing package. That means the current certificate, the lodging tax filings for the last 12 months, the local contact arrangement, and, for a Perry property, the special exception approval and the most recent inspection report. A buyer who can see that the property has operated cleanly under the ordinance, with no violations and taxes paid on time, is a buyer who can underwrite with confidence and close without a renegotiation. A seller who cannot produce that file is asking the buyer to take the income on faith, and most investors will discount the price for it.

Sellers should also know that the house competes in two markets at once. Most buyers of a 3-bedroom ranch in Warner Robins are families and Robins-connected households who will live in it, and the furnishings and the keypad lock are irrelevant to them. Pricing the home as a turnkey rental narrows the buyer pool to investors, who price on yield. In most Houston County neighborhoods the owner-occupant market sets the higher number, which is why I usually price the house as a house and present the rental history as an added option rather than the headline.

Internal link note: Link "close without a renegotiation" to the Contract to Close seller post on the due diligence period.

For Buyers: Should I Buy an Airbnb in Warner Robins, Perry or Kathleen?

Each of the three markets answers a different question. A Warner Robins or Kathleen rental serves the base: temporary duty assignments, house-hunting families and contractors, with stays that run weeks and demand that holds year-round. A Perry rental serves the Fairgrounds and I-75, with sharp peaks in October and February and quieter months between. Bonaire and Kathleen, both unincorporated, carry the county's registration-only rules and newer housing stock, which is why they attract investors who want the base demand without a city process.

My advice to buyers is to pick the jurisdiction before the house. If the plan depends on a residential-district property in Perry, budget for the special exception timeline and check the STR map for the 1,000-foot rule before falling for a house. If the plan is base-driven, the unincorporated county and, after January 1, 2027, Warner Robins both allow registration without a hearing, and the occupancy formula tells you exactly what a 3-bedroom or 4-bedroom house can sleep. Then underwrite on the ordinance's occupancy, not the seller's listing, and on net income after the state and local taxes, the cleaning, the manager and the insurance. Finally, write the certificate into the timeline: in the county, the application is due within 7 days of closing, and I would rather have it ready at the closing table than lose a month of bookings waiting on it.

A short-term rental in Houston County can work. The demand is real and it is not seasonal in the way a vacation market is. But the buyers who do well here are the ones who treat the ordinance as part of the purchase, because starting January 1, 2027 every address in the county's three largest jurisdictions will be covered by one.

Frequently Asked Questions About Buying a Short-Term Rental in Houston County, GA

Are short-term rentals legal in Houston County, Georgia?

Yes, with a certificate or permit from the jurisdiction the property is in. In unincorporated Houston County, including Bonaire and Kathleen, the Short-Term Rental Ordinance adopted in May 2025 and effective July 1, 2025 allows rentals of 30 days or less once the owner obtains an accommodation excise tax certificate. The City of Perry allows short-term rentals with an STR permit, by right in its office, commercial and mixed-use districts and by special exception in residential districts. Warner Robins adopted its own ordinance on October 5, 2026, effective January 1, 2027, which requires a city certificate for every rental of 30 days or fewer. Georgia has no statewide short-term rental license, so local rules control.

Does Warner Robins have a short-term rental ordinance?

Yes. The Warner Robins City Council unanimously adopted an ordinance on October 5, 2026 adding Division 3 to Chapter 10, Article II of the city code, with an effective date of January 1, 2027. It requires an accommodation excise tax certificate for every rental of 30 consecutive days or fewer before the property is advertised or rented, caps overnight occupancy at 2 per bedroom plus 2 with a 15-person maximum, requires a local contact who can be on site within 2 hours, bans commercial events, and requires certificate holders to collect the city hotel-motel tax. City officials said roughly 200 short-term rentals were operating inside the city limits when the ordinance passed.

How much does a short-term rental certificate cost in Houston County?

In unincorporated Houston County the initial accommodation excise tax certificate is $150 per rental, or $75 for applications filed after July 1, and renewal is $100 per year. Certificates expire December 31. Warner Robins adopted the same $150 initial fee, $75 after July 1, and $100 renewal, with renewals due by the second Monday of December. Perry charges $325 for the special exception application and initial STR permit and $212 for annual renewal; the first inspection is free and a re-inspection costs $145. Operating without a certificate in the county or Warner Robins carries a fine of up to $1,000 per day.

Can I run an Airbnb in Perry, GA?

Yes, with an STR permit from the City of Perry. Short-term rentals are permitted with a permit in the OI, C1, C2, C3, IMU, MUC and NMU zoning districts. In residential districts (R-AG, R-1, R-2, R-3, R-TH, RM-1, RM-2, R-MH and FBR) an initial permit requires a special exception, which goes before the Planning Commission and then to City Council at a public hearing. A proposed rental may not be within 1,000 feet of an existing permitted short-term rental, measured property line to property line, and the city publishes a map of permitted rentals. Permits require proof of insurance, an initial inspection and annual inspections, a designated local contact, and the permit number in all advertising.

What is the lodging tax on Airbnb rentals in Houston County, GA?

Unincorporated Houston County levies a 5 percent lodging tax on short-term rental stays under the Houston County Lodging Tax Ordinance, effective July 1, 2025. Operators collect it from guests, file a monthly return with the county finance director by the 20th of the following month, and may retain 3 percent as a collection allowance if they pay on time. Warner Robins certificate holders will collect the city's hotel-motel tax, which the Georgia Department of Community Affairs lists at 8 percent. Perry operators remit the city hotel-motel tax to the Perry Finance Director within 30 days. All Georgia short-term rentals also collect the 4 percent state sales tax and the $5 per night state hotel-motel fee.

Does a short-term rental certificate transfer to the buyer in Houston County?

No. The Houston County ordinance makes the certificate non-assignable and non-transferable. When a certified property is sold, the buyer may operate for a 30-day grace period only if a new application is submitted within 7 days of the sale; otherwise the rental must stop until a certificate is issued in the buyer's name. Perry issues the STR permit to the property owner and states that it is not transferable, so a buyer in a residential district applies for a new special exception. Warner Robins certificates are issued per unit to the owner or licensed managing agent under the ordinance effective January 1, 2027, and buyers there should plan to apply fresh.

How many guests can stay in an Airbnb in Warner Robins or Bonaire?

Two overnight guests per bedroom plus two additional guests, with an absolute maximum of 15, under both the Houston County ordinance for Bonaire, Kathleen and other unincorporated addresses and the Warner Robins ordinance effective January 1, 2027. Children under 12 are not counted. A 3-bedroom house sleeps 8 overnight and a 4-bedroom sleeps 10. The county allows a variance for homes with 6 or more bedrooms, and Warner Robins adopted the same variance provision. Only one party of guests may occupy a unit at a time in either jurisdiction. In Perry, the maximum occupancy is set on the STR permit itself.

Can I buy a short-term rental near Robins Air Force Base with a VA loan?

Not as an investment property. VA loans require the borrower to occupy the home as a primary residence, so VA financing cannot be used to buy a house in Warner Robins, Kathleen or Bonaire for the purpose of operating it as an Airbnb. A VA borrower can buy a home, occupy it during an assignment at Robins, and later retain it as a rental after a permanent change of station, at which point the owner applies for the certificate that applies to the address. Investors buying a short-term rental from the start generally use conventional investment-property financing or a loan based on the property's projected rental income.

What makes Houston County short-term rental demand different from a vacation market?

The two main demand drivers are not seasonal tourism. Robins Air Force Base generates temporary duty assignments, contractor stays and house-hunting visits by relocating families year-round, which city officials in Warner Robins cited as a reason the city's short-term rental count reached about 200. The Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter in Perry hosts year-round events including the Georgia National Junior Livestock Show and Georgia National Rodeo in February, and the Georgia National Fair drew a record 612,706 visitors in 2025. Interstate 75 adds overnight travelers between Atlanta and Florida. The result is a market with steady weekday and multi-week demand near the base and sharp event peaks in Perry.

Do HOA covenants in Kathleen or Bonaire allow short-term rentals?

Many do not. Recorded subdivision covenants in Houston County frequently set a minimum lease term, often 6 or 12 months, or prohibit transient or short-term rental outright, and a county accommodation excise tax certificate does not override a private covenant. The covenants appear in the title search during the due diligence period, and a buyer who plans to operate a short-term rental should review them, and any HOA rules and amendments, before the due diligence deadline. Properties outside a covenant-restricted subdivision, including many older homes and acreage lots in the unincorporated county, are subject only to the county ordinance.

What happens if I operate an Airbnb without a certificate in Houston County?

Under the county ordinance, operating or advertising a short-term rental in unincorporated Houston County without a certificate carries a fine of up to $1,000, and each day is a separate violation. Other violations carry $250 for a first offense, $500 for a second and $1,000 for a third within 12 months, and guests can be fined up to $1,000 for their own violations. The Warner Robins ordinance, effective January 1, 2027, adopts the same $1,000 per day penalty for operating without a certificate and the same $250, $500 and $1,000 schedule for repeat violations, and allows the city to suspend a certificate for up to 12 months or revoke it after three convictions in a year.

Does Georgia require short-term rental hosts to complete human trafficking training?

Georgia's Human Trafficking Prevention Training Act, Senate Bill 570, took effect July 1, 2026. It requires annual human trafficking awareness training, a reporting policy and training records for on-site employees of inns and for third-party property managers of short-term rental properties in Georgia. Under the enacted text, the requirement does not apply to short-term rental properties managed directly and exclusively by the individual owner, or to properties offered for rent fewer than 15 days in a calendar year. A Houston County investor who hires a property manager should confirm the manager's training is current.

About the Author

William Walton-Dean is a licensed REALTOR® with Walton Dean Realty, operating under Real Broker LLC, serving buyers and sellers across Houston County, Georgia, including Perry, Warner Robins, Bonaire, Kathleen, Byron, and the surrounding Middle Georgia housing market. He brings a data-driven, hyper-local approach to both residential and commercial transactions, working with first-time buyers, move-up sellers, investors, and families relocating to the area, including those tied to Robins Air Force Base. Drawing on a prior career as a C-level executive, he helps buyers and sellers at every price point make clear, confident decisions backed by real market insight.

📱 478-371-7069

Walton Dean Realty | Real Broker LLC

Buying or Selling a Short-Term Rental in Houston County? Let's Talk.

Whether you are buying your first rental near Robins Air Force Base, weighing a Perry property against the special exception process, or selling a home that has been earning on Airbnb, I will help you confirm the jurisdiction, the covenants and the certificate timeline before you commit, so the numbers you are counting on hold up after closing. I work with investors, sellers and buyers across Houston County.

William Walton-Dean | Walton Dean Realty

📱 478-371-7069

📧 [email protected]

A More Strategic Approach to Real Estate

This article is provided for general informational purposes about short-term rental investment and regulation in Houston County, Georgia and does not constitute legal, tax, lending or financial advice. Ordinance provisions, fees, fines, tax rates and effective dates are set by Houston County, the Cities of Warner Robins and Perry, and the State of Georgia and may change; the Warner Robins ordinance described here was adopted October 5, 2026 and takes effect January 1, 2027. Confirm current requirements with the applicable jurisdiction, a licensed lender, an attorney and a tax professional before purchasing or operating a rental. William Walton-Dean is a licensed REALTOR® with Walton Dean Realty under Real Broker LLC and is not an attorney, lender or tax advisor.