What public rules cover short-term rentals in Whitchurch-Stouffville?

By-law 2026-069-LI replaced the earlier by-law and requires a licence to market or operate a short-term rental, the use of a dwelling unit or part of one for paid overnight stays of no more than 28 consecutive days. No person may operate one at more than one premises in the town, and a rental may operate only within one legally established dwelling unit on a lot. The limit is two persons per guest room and ten in all; where rooms are rented separately, no more than two at once. A rental can't be in a vehicle, tent, boat, recreational vehicle or accessory building, and parking is one space for each two guest rooms, or one for each four persons when the whole unit is rented.

An application needs proof of $2,000,000 of general liability insurance and floor and site plans, and a new rental is inspected before its first licence; a licence runs for one year, with an inspection on renewal every five years, and an owner must answer concerns within one hour. The Town's page lists a payment of $1,116.00 with the application and posts the address and maximum occupancy of each licensed rental. The by-law is the public rule; whether a particular home holds a licence is a separate question.

• Short-term rentals: the Town's page on licences, the application payment and the list of licensed rentals
• Short-Term Rental By-law 2026-069-LI: the by-law passed on 12 August 2026 (PDF)

Rental and short-term rental rules is in the free check as a summary of the Town's by-law, from our hand-kept table, linked to the Town's page. The full report adds the home-business rule. Neither says how a given home is used.

Free check: pick “Rental and short-term rental rules” See the sample report