Background
What is ‘Short-Term Rental Accommodation’ or STRA?
Short-Term Rental Accommodation (STRA) refers to the practice of renting out all or part of a house, apartment, ancillary dwelling (granny flat) or individual rooms within a host's residence for a short period of time, typically on a nightly or weekly basis.
This type of accommodation is usually booked through online platforms and is popular amongst travellers and visitors seeking a temporary place to stay for holidays, business trips or other short stays.
STRA does not include hotels, lodging houses or any other form of purpose-built tourist and visitor accommodation.
State Government Planning Reform
In September 2024 the State Government introduced changes to the Planning and Development (Local Planning Scheme) Regulations 2015 (LPS Regulations) that changes planning requirements for STRA. These changes impact the City’s local planning schemes as outlined below:
- Changes to the deemed provisions that automatically apply to all local planning schemes to introduce:
- New land use terms:
- ‘Hosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation’ - means STRA within a dwelling, where the owner or occupier resides at the same dwelling (e.g. a bed and breakfast) or in another dwelling on the same lot as the STRA (e.g. a lot owner resides at their main residence and leases the ancillary dwelling that is located on the same lot).
- ‘Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation’ - means a dwelling used for STRA that accommodates 12 people or less per night, where the owner or occupier does not reside at the same dwelling (e.g. an entire apartment used for STRA).
- Exemptions from the requirement to obtain development approval for all ‘Hosted STRA’, and ‘Unhosted STRA’ in the Perth metropolitan area for up to 90 nights within a 12-month period.
- Introduction of 'Tourist and Visitor Accommodation' as a new model land use term, to supersede existing definitions, including bed and breakfast, motel and serviced apartment.
Following amendment of the LPS Regulations, the Minister for Planning directed Local Governments to amend their local planning schemes to align with the changes.
Local Planning Scheme Amendments
At its Ordinary Meeting on 27 May 2025, Council resolved to prepare amendments to the following local planning schemes to align with the LPS Regulations:
- City Planning Scheme No. 2 (CPS2), which applies to Central Perth, East Perth, and parts of Crawley, Northbridge and West Perth.
- Local Planning Scheme No. 26 (LPS26), which applies to Normalised Redevelopment Areas in Claisebrook and Northbridge. These areas were previously under the planning control of Development WA but have since been transferred back to the City of Perth.
- Town Planning Scheme No. 4 (TPS4), which applies to land in Crawley-Nedlands neighbourhood that was transferred from the City of Subiaco to the City of Perth as part of the changes to local government boundaries in 2016.
The scheme amendment reports (refer to the Documents pane) each include details of the proposed changes, background context, and technical analysis.
Key Changes
The key changes include:
- Insertion of new land use terms consistent with the LPS Regulations and associated land use permissibility:
Proposed New Land Uses and Land Use Permissibility
|
|---|
New Land Use | CPS2 | LPS26 | TPS4 |
Hosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation (Hosted STRA) | ‘Preferred’ | ‘Preferred’ | ‘Permitted’ |
Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation (Unhosted STRA) | ‘Contemplated’ | ‘Contemplated’ | ‘Discretionary’ |
Tourist and Visitor Accommodation | Inserted into 'Special Residential' Land Use Category. No change to permissibility. | Inserted into 'Transient Residential' Land Use Category. No change to permissibility. | ‘Discretionary’ in all zones except ‘Not Permitted’ in Residential R15 and R20 zones. |
- in TPS4, insertion of Car Parking Requirements for Unhosted STRA and Tourist and Visitor Accommodation, and End of Trip Facilities for Bicycle Users for Tourist and Visitor Accommodation.
- modification of the definition of ‘Hotel’ to align with the LPS Regulations. There are no changes to the permissibility of this land use.
- removal of all references to ‘Short-Term Accommodation’ to avoid confusion with the new ‘Short-Term Rental Accommodation’ term applied by the LPS Regulations.
- removal of superseded land use terms ‘Serviced Apartments’, ‘Motel’ and ‘Bed and Breakfast’, as these land uses are captured under the new land use terms ‘Tourist and Visitor Accommodation’ and ‘Unhosted STRA’.
In accordance with the Planning and Development Act 2005, consent from the Minister for Planning is required to proceed to advertise the amendments for public comment. The Minister for Planning provided consent to advertise:
- Amendment No. 26 to TPS4 with no modifications required.
- Amendment No. 53 to CPS2 subject to minor modifications.
- Amendment No. 7 to LPS26 subject to modifications to site-specific provisions for serviced apartments. The modifications remove all references to ‘Serviced Apartments’ and ‘Short Stay Accommodation’ and replace them with ‘Multiple Dwelling’ and ‘Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation’.
The Scheme Amendment Reports have been revised to include the Minister's modifications, and details outlining the Minister's modifications are provided in the FAQs.
Local Planning Policies
At its Ordinary Meeting on 27 May 2025, Council also resolved to advertise the following two draft planning policies:
- a revised Planning Policy 3.9 – Special Residential and Short-Term Rental Accommodation Policy which applies to all scheme use areas under CPS2 and LPS26.
- a new Tourist and Visitor Accommodation and Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation Local Planning Policy which will be applied to all land zoned under TPS4.
The purpose of these policies is to guide the assessment of applications for development approval for ‘Unhosted STRA’ and ‘Tourist and Visitor Accommodation’, to underpin the proposed amendments to local planning schemes.
Key Changes
Updated Planning Policy Section 3.9 - Special Residential and Short-Term Rental Accommodation
This planning policy will apply to all scheme uses areas under CPS2 and LPS26, which is all areas other than the Crawley-Nedlands neighbourhood.
| Summary of Key Changes |
|
|---|
Policy Objectives, Principles and Other | Policy Provisions |
- Revised terminology (including re-naming of policy) to align with the uses proposed in the scheme amendments.
- Modified structure, subheadings, formatting, and simplified language to improve flow and readability.
- Inclusion of reference to the Local Planning Strategy to support strategic alignment.
- Introduction of objectives to address local amenity, character, scale, and heritage protected places to support place-based assessment and decision making.
- Removal of the Definitions section, as land use definitions are located within the scheme text and the policy does not introduce policy-specific terms.
- Updated references to industry bodies and associations.
| - Separated provisions for ‘Special Residential’ and ‘Unhosted STRA’ to provide greater clarity to the reader.
- Modification to Special Residential design provisions to ensure residential amenity is maintained where located in the same building as permanent residential land uses and to extend existing management provisions.
- Introduction of provisions for 'Unhosted STRA' relating to occupancy, parking, signage, management and time-limited approvals.
- Replacement of policy provisions relating to non-planning legislation as notes in the policy.
|
New Tourist and Visitor Accommodation and Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation Local Planning Policy
This draft local planning policy (LPP) will apply to land zoned under TPS4, which applies to land in Crawley-Nedlands neighbourhood that was transferred from the City of Subiaco to the City of Perth as part of the changes to local government boundaries in 2016.
The draft LPP is consistent with the draft Planning Policy 3.9 – Special Residential and Short-Term Rental Accommodation Policy that applies under CPS2 and LPS26, and includes:
- Objectives that address local amenity, character, scale, and heritage protected places to support place-based assessment and decision making.
- Provisions for Tourist and Visitor Accommodation relating to management.
- Provisions for Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation relating to number of occupants, parking and signage, management and time limited approvals.
Submission Details
Written submissions must be received by the City before the close of business on 16 October 2025. Please complete the online submission form below or submit the attached Submission Form.
Please note in accordance with the Planning and Development (Local Planning Schemes) Regulations 2015 all submissions received, including submitter details, will be considered, and made available to the public when the amendment is considered by Council for final adoption.
Background
What is ‘Short-Term Rental Accommodation’ or STRA?
Short-Term Rental Accommodation (STRA) refers to the practice of renting out all or part of a house, apartment, ancillary dwelling (granny flat) or individual rooms within a host's residence for a short period of time, typically on a nightly or weekly basis.
This type of accommodation is usually booked through online platforms and is popular amongst travellers and visitors seeking a temporary place to stay for holidays, business trips or other short stays.
STRA does not include hotels, lodging houses or any other form of purpose-built tourist and visitor accommodation.
State Government Planning Reform
In September 2024 the State Government introduced changes to the Planning and Development (Local Planning Scheme) Regulations 2015 (LPS Regulations) that changes planning requirements for STRA. These changes impact the City’s local planning schemes as outlined below:
- Changes to the deemed provisions that automatically apply to all local planning schemes to introduce:
- New land use terms:
- ‘Hosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation’ - means STRA within a dwelling, where the owner or occupier resides at the same dwelling (e.g. a bed and breakfast) or in another dwelling on the same lot as the STRA (e.g. a lot owner resides at their main residence and leases the ancillary dwelling that is located on the same lot).
- ‘Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation’ - means a dwelling used for STRA that accommodates 12 people or less per night, where the owner or occupier does not reside at the same dwelling (e.g. an entire apartment used for STRA).
- Exemptions from the requirement to obtain development approval for all ‘Hosted STRA’, and ‘Unhosted STRA’ in the Perth metropolitan area for up to 90 nights within a 12-month period.
- Introduction of 'Tourist and Visitor Accommodation' as a new model land use term, to supersede existing definitions, including bed and breakfast, motel and serviced apartment.
Following amendment of the LPS Regulations, the Minister for Planning directed Local Governments to amend their local planning schemes to align with the changes.
Local Planning Scheme Amendments
At its Ordinary Meeting on 27 May 2025, Council resolved to prepare amendments to the following local planning schemes to align with the LPS Regulations:
- City Planning Scheme No. 2 (CPS2), which applies to Central Perth, East Perth, and parts of Crawley, Northbridge and West Perth.
- Local Planning Scheme No. 26 (LPS26), which applies to Normalised Redevelopment Areas in Claisebrook and Northbridge. These areas were previously under the planning control of Development WA but have since been transferred back to the City of Perth.
- Town Planning Scheme No. 4 (TPS4), which applies to land in Crawley-Nedlands neighbourhood that was transferred from the City of Subiaco to the City of Perth as part of the changes to local government boundaries in 2016.
The scheme amendment reports (refer to the Documents pane) each include details of the proposed changes, background context, and technical analysis.
Key Changes
The key changes include:
- Insertion of new land use terms consistent with the LPS Regulations and associated land use permissibility:
Proposed New Land Uses and Land Use Permissibility
|
|---|
New Land Use | CPS2 | LPS26 | TPS4 |
Hosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation (Hosted STRA) | ‘Preferred’ | ‘Preferred’ | ‘Permitted’ |
Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation (Unhosted STRA) | ‘Contemplated’ | ‘Contemplated’ | ‘Discretionary’ |
Tourist and Visitor Accommodation | Inserted into 'Special Residential' Land Use Category. No change to permissibility. | Inserted into 'Transient Residential' Land Use Category. No change to permissibility. | ‘Discretionary’ in all zones except ‘Not Permitted’ in Residential R15 and R20 zones. |
- in TPS4, insertion of Car Parking Requirements for Unhosted STRA and Tourist and Visitor Accommodation, and End of Trip Facilities for Bicycle Users for Tourist and Visitor Accommodation.
- modification of the definition of ‘Hotel’ to align with the LPS Regulations. There are no changes to the permissibility of this land use.
- removal of all references to ‘Short-Term Accommodation’ to avoid confusion with the new ‘Short-Term Rental Accommodation’ term applied by the LPS Regulations.
- removal of superseded land use terms ‘Serviced Apartments’, ‘Motel’ and ‘Bed and Breakfast’, as these land uses are captured under the new land use terms ‘Tourist and Visitor Accommodation’ and ‘Unhosted STRA’.
In accordance with the Planning and Development Act 2005, consent from the Minister for Planning is required to proceed to advertise the amendments for public comment. The Minister for Planning provided consent to advertise:
- Amendment No. 26 to TPS4 with no modifications required.
- Amendment No. 53 to CPS2 subject to minor modifications.
- Amendment No. 7 to LPS26 subject to modifications to site-specific provisions for serviced apartments. The modifications remove all references to ‘Serviced Apartments’ and ‘Short Stay Accommodation’ and replace them with ‘Multiple Dwelling’ and ‘Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation’.
The Scheme Amendment Reports have been revised to include the Minister's modifications, and details outlining the Minister's modifications are provided in the FAQs.
Local Planning Policies
At its Ordinary Meeting on 27 May 2025, Council also resolved to advertise the following two draft planning policies:
- a revised Planning Policy 3.9 – Special Residential and Short-Term Rental Accommodation Policy which applies to all scheme use areas under CPS2 and LPS26.
- a new Tourist and Visitor Accommodation and Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation Local Planning Policy which will be applied to all land zoned under TPS4.
The purpose of these policies is to guide the assessment of applications for development approval for ‘Unhosted STRA’ and ‘Tourist and Visitor Accommodation’, to underpin the proposed amendments to local planning schemes.
Key Changes
Updated Planning Policy Section 3.9 - Special Residential and Short-Term Rental Accommodation
This planning policy will apply to all scheme uses areas under CPS2 and LPS26, which is all areas other than the Crawley-Nedlands neighbourhood.
| Summary of Key Changes |
|
|---|
Policy Objectives, Principles and Other | Policy Provisions |
- Revised terminology (including re-naming of policy) to align with the uses proposed in the scheme amendments.
- Modified structure, subheadings, formatting, and simplified language to improve flow and readability.
- Inclusion of reference to the Local Planning Strategy to support strategic alignment.
- Introduction of objectives to address local amenity, character, scale, and heritage protected places to support place-based assessment and decision making.
- Removal of the Definitions section, as land use definitions are located within the scheme text and the policy does not introduce policy-specific terms.
- Updated references to industry bodies and associations.
| - Separated provisions for ‘Special Residential’ and ‘Unhosted STRA’ to provide greater clarity to the reader.
- Modification to Special Residential design provisions to ensure residential amenity is maintained where located in the same building as permanent residential land uses and to extend existing management provisions.
- Introduction of provisions for 'Unhosted STRA' relating to occupancy, parking, signage, management and time-limited approvals.
- Replacement of policy provisions relating to non-planning legislation as notes in the policy.
|
New Tourist and Visitor Accommodation and Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation Local Planning Policy
This draft local planning policy (LPP) will apply to land zoned under TPS4, which applies to land in Crawley-Nedlands neighbourhood that was transferred from the City of Subiaco to the City of Perth as part of the changes to local government boundaries in 2016.
The draft LPP is consistent with the draft Planning Policy 3.9 – Special Residential and Short-Term Rental Accommodation Policy that applies under CPS2 and LPS26, and includes:
- Objectives that address local amenity, character, scale, and heritage protected places to support place-based assessment and decision making.
- Provisions for Tourist and Visitor Accommodation relating to management.
- Provisions for Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation relating to number of occupants, parking and signage, management and time limited approvals.
Submission Details
Written submissions must be received by the City before the close of business on 16 October 2025. Please complete the online submission form below or submit the attached Submission Form.
Please note in accordance with the Planning and Development (Local Planning Schemes) Regulations 2015 all submissions received, including submitter details, will be considered, and made available to the public when the amendment is considered by Council for final adoption.
Minutes - OCM - 27 May 2025 (2.55 MB) (pdf)
Scheme Amendment Reports
