Neighborhoods
Thinking About Short-Term Renting Your East Nashville Home? An Owner's Guide
Why the neighborhood performs, what's legal here, and how to stand out.
We're a little biased about East Nashville — it's where we're based, and where a lot of our properties live. But the bias is earned. For homeowners weighing whether to short-term rent a space here, East Nashville is one of the most rewarding neighborhoods in the city to do it in. Here's an honest guide, written for owners.
Why East Nashville Performs for Short-Term Rentals
Guests love East Nashville for the same reasons residents do. It's walkable and full of character — Five Points, Riverside Village, the coffee shops, the restaurants, the murals. It's minutes from Broadway without the downtown noise and pricing. And its housing stock is exactly the kind of distinctive, design-forward space that stands out in a sea of generic listings. Travelers who want to feel like they're in Nashville, not just visiting it, gravitate here.
The Zoning Reality in East Nashville
Most of East Nashville is zoned residential, which shapes your options: new non-owner-occupied short-term rentals generally aren't permitted in those residential districts. For most East Nashville homeowners, that makes the owner-occupied route the path — living on the property and renting out a separate unit like a DADU, carriage house, or above-garage apartment, or hosting your home when you travel.
That said, East Nashville isn't only owner-occupied territory. There are purpose-built, STR-friendly townhome developments scattered throughout the area, sited in zoning that permits non-owner-occupied rentals — so if you own (or are considering buying) in one of those, a non-owner-occupied permit may well be on the table. Knowing which pockets allow what is half the game.
One important detail on the owner-occupied side: since 2020, Nashville law has barred owner-occupied permits from advertising the entire/whole home:
"Advertisements for an owner-occupied STRP shall not advertise availability of the entire/whole home."Metro Code § 17.16.250.E, as amended by Ordinance BL2019-79
A single home you live in can lawfully be listed only as a shared space; a separate unit — a DADU, carriage house, or above-garage apartment — can be rented as an entire place, since you live in the main house. East Nashville's unusually high concentration of exactly those accessory spaces is a big part of why it works so well here. As always, zoning overlays, historic-district rules, and your specific block can affect what's allowed, so confirm your exact address rather than assuming based on the neighborhood.
What Makes an East Nashville Space Rent Well
The properties that shine here lean into what makes the neighborhood special: local character over generic finishes, a comfortable and genuinely private guest space, thoughtful touches that point people toward the good coffee and the great tacos, and the kind of spotless, well-stocked consistency that earns repeat five-star reviews. You don't need to imitate a downtown high-rise. You need to be authentically, comfortably East Nashville.
Managed by People Who Actually Live Here
Rest Easy Nashville is an East Nashville company. We're based right here, and we know these streets — which pockets perform, which blocks come with tighter parking, pickier neighbors, or permitting headaches, and how to set a property up to succeed exactly where it sits. We handle everything — permitting, listing, pricing, guests, cleaning, and compliance — while you collect your payout. And because we're boutique by design, your East Nashville property gets our full attention.
If you own a home in East Nashville and you've wondered what it could do as a short-term rental, tell us about your place — from one East Nashville neighbor to another, we'll give you a straight answer.
