Timmins City Council has approved a new Short-Term Accommodation By-law that will provide municipal oversight on properties used for short-terms stays. The popularity of vacation rental services has grown, with home owners renting out their residence, or part of their residence, for periods of less than 28 consecutive days. A quick search online shows apartments, cottages, homes, and guesthouses throughout Timmins as available.
By-law 2025-9085 is effective January 14, 2025, and requires that all short-term accommodations be licensed in Timmins as a business.
This means that properties being used for short-term accommodation, different from a hotel or bed and breakfast, will need to follow the City’s property and occupancy standards, health and safety regulations, and begin collecting the Municipal Transient Accommodation Tax (MAT).
“The benefit of a regulated short-term rental policy cannot be understated,” said Mayor Michelle Boileau. “With housing availability being a concern, we would like to encourage property owners to consider long-term rental agreements over short-term stays, but if they are renting out space for shorter stays, we also want to make sure that they follow our property standards and that the space is safe and maintained. This is important to both neighbouring property owners and temporary guests.
“We also have an opportunity to increase available MAT funding by having the tax collected on short-term rental accommodations. This means more potential funding for profit and not-for-profit tourism initiatives. We can further support important programs, like outreach services and the City’s Safety Improvement Grant, which are directly funded through the municipal portion of MAT revenues.”
Individuals with short-term rental properties can register with Service Timmins.
Review By-law 2025-9085: https://bit.ly/3PzRabk