Can I Airbnb my Bellingham ADU?
✓ Verified against code · August 20, 2026
It depends on whether it is attached. An attached ADU may be short-term rented anywhere in the city. A detached ADU may only be short-term rented in commercial, multi-residential and urban-village zones — or in a single-family zone once the citywide rental vacancy rate reaches 4%. Either way, only one of the main house or the ADU may hold a short-term rental permit, never both.
Citation: BMC 20.10.037
How current is this?
Bellingham’s ADU rules run under BMC 20.10.036 (Accessory Dwelling Units) (Ordinance 2025-12-035 §2). Bellingham completed its HB 1337 alignment in Ordinance 2025-12-035, effective December 23, 2025 — roughly six months after the state's June 30 deadline. Two of the standards below rest on interim ordinances rather than permanent code: the citywide elimination of parking minimums, and the companion infill regulations that sunset in December 2026. We verified this answer against primary sources on August 20, 2026, and every change we catch is logged in the changelog.
More Bellingham ADU questions
- How many ADUs can I build in Bellingham?
- How tall can a detached Bellingham ADU be?
- Can I sit a Bellingham ADU on the alley line?
- Can I sell a Bellingham ADU separately?
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Not legal advice — lot-specific overlays can change the answer for your parcel. The citation above points at the governing code section; check it, or ask the city to confirm.