Can you Airbnb a house at Smith Mountain Lake? In most places, yes — but not the way you could five years ago, and not without checking the specific county and neighborhood first. As the lake got more popular, both Bedford and Franklin counties wrote rules for short-term rentals: registration, permits, and standards you have to meet. The rules differ by county, they have changed more than once in the last few years, and they are still moving. So if rental income is part of your reason for buying, treat the current local ordinance as a due-diligence item, not an afterthought — verify it for the exact parcel before you count on the cash flow.
Why the rules exist at all
Short-term rentals arrived at the lake faster than the rulebook did. Full-time residents started living next to a rotating cast of weekend renters, the complaints followed, and the counties responded the way counties do — with ordinances. None of this is unique to Smith Mountain Lake; it is the same story playing out at every desirable lake in the country. What it means for you as a buyer is simple: “short-term rental” is now a regulated use here, and whether a given property qualifies is a question with a real answer you can get before you buy.
Bedford County
Bedford, which holds a large share of the lake’s developed shoreline, moved to require short-term rentals to register and obtain permits, with standards attached. If you are buying on the Bedford side with rental plans, budget for the registration and permitting step and confirm that your specific parcel’s zoning allows the use. This is exactly the kind of thing that is easy to assume and expensive to get wrong.
Franklin County
Franklin County also regulates short-term rentals and has continued to revisit its approach — zoning changes affecting where and how STRs are allowed have been on the table as recently as this year. “Continued to revisit” is the operative phrase: what is true today may be refined next quarter, which is precisely why a current-ordinance check beats any blog post, including this one.
Pittsylvania and the HOA layer
Pittsylvania County holds comparatively little of the lake’s waterfront and has taken a lighter touch, but the county is only half the picture anywhere on the lake. Many lake communities have their own HOA covenants, and an HOA can forbid short-term rentals outright even where the county permits them. I have watched buyers clear the county rules and get stopped cold by a subdivision covenant. Both layers have to say yes.
Straight answers
Can I short-term rent my Smith Mountain Lake home?
Usually, but it is regulated. Both Bedford and Franklin counties require you to follow their short-term-rental rules — registration, permits, standards — and your neighborhood’s HOA may add its own limits or a flat prohibition. Confirm both before you rely on rental income.
Which county is friendliest to rentals?
It shifts as ordinances get revised, so I will not freeze an answer that could be wrong by the time you read it. The right move is to check the current rules for the specific parcel and county you are considering — that is a question I help buyers run down as part of the search.
Do the rules change often?
Often enough that you should verify rather than assume. Both counties have adjusted their STR frameworks in recent years, and Franklin has revisited its zoning as recently as this year.
Can an HOA stop me even if the county allows it?
Yes. A homeowners association can prohibit short-term rentals regardless of county rules. Read the covenants before you buy — it is one of the first documents I want in hand when a buyer’s plan includes renting.
Before you buy on this lake
If the rental math is part of your decision, it belongs in your due diligence from day one, not after closing. The free book covers buying here with your eyes open, and the team can help you check the county and HOA rules for a specific property before you write an offer. Also worth reading alongside this: how the counties tax lake property, since the same county lines shape both.
Paul Moore is an Associate Broker at Smith Mountain Lake, the author of The Definitive Guide to Smith Mountain Lake Real Estate, and the only lake REALTOR® featured on HGTV’s House Hunters. Local ordinances change; always confirm current rules with the county and your HOA.