Can you short-term rent your suite or laneway home?
It depends on your city more than on the suite. The Province sets a minimum, and some Lower Mainland cities are stricter. Here is what the Province, Vancouver, Burnaby and Surrey say, and how we run the hosting once a space can take guests.
The property review is free. If your suite or laneway home cannot be hosted, we tell you before any photos or set-up. General information, not legal advice.
The short answer, place by place
- The Province. Where BC's principal residence requirement applies, short-term rentals are limited to the home you live in plus one secondary suite or accessory dwelling unit, such as a lane house or carriage home, on the same property. That is the minimum: the Province says cities can have stricter bylaws, and hosts must follow them. Vancouver, Burnaby and Surrey are all on the list where the requirement applies.
- Vancouver. Stricter. You can rent a laneway house, basement suite or secondary suite only if it is the unit you live in, and you cannot rent both the main house and the suite as short-term rentals.
- Burnaby. Stricter again. The City lists secondary suites, and accessory buildings such as a garage or laneway home, among the places where short-term rentals are not allowed.
- Surrey. Closest to the provincial rule. The owner must live on the lot, and a short-term rental is allowed in a single-family house and up to one secondary suite, coach house or garden suite.
In Vancouver: only the unit you live in
If you live in the main house, the basement suite or laneway house cannot be a short-term rental. If you live in the laneway house, that is the unit you can licence, and the main house stays out of short stays. Short stays here mean less than 90 consecutive days, and they need a City short-term rental licence. The details are in our Vancouver short-term rental rules guide, and our pages on Kitsilano and South Vancouver show how this works for a house with a suite.
In Burnaby: your own home, not the suite
Burnaby grants short-term rental licences only for the homeowner's principal residence, and tenants cannot host, even with the landlord's permission. Its business licence page also lists a home that contains a secondary suite among the places short stays are not permitted, so a house with a suite needs checking with the City before anything is listed. Burnaby also limits the nights: up to 90 per calendar year, of which up to 28 can be the whole home. See our Burnaby page for how we work there.
In Surrey: the owner lives on the lot
Surrey lets the owner host a unit on the lot they live on, whether the owner lives in that unit or in another one in the home or on the same lot. So an owner living in the main house can ask about hosting the coach house or garden suite. Tenants cannot host, and the owner needs a City business licence before the first guest. Our Surrey short-term rental rules guide has the details, and our Surrey page covers what we handle there.
Everywhere in BC: register the unit
Hosts must register with the provincial registry and renew each year, and each short-term rental unit needs its own registration number. For the Province, a space separate from where you live, sleep and eat counts as a secondary unit, even when an interior door connects it to the house. Somewhere else in BC? Your city's own bylaw decides it, and our BC short-term rental rules guide covers the provincial side.
When short stays are not allowed
The Province, Vancouver and Surrey each draw the short-term line at stays of less than 90 consecutive days. Burnaby's pages describe a yearly limit on nights rather than a stay length, so ask the City how it treats a longer stay. In Vancouver, renting out a home you own for 90 days or more at a time needs a long-term rental business licence, and a longer let can be a tenancy with a landlord's duties. Our guide to 90-day stays explains what changes. bnbHost runs short stays, so we say plainly at the review if your suite is not one we can take on.
What we handle once a space can take guests
- Getting in. Key exchange planned around the suite's own entrance, so guests reach the right door without you there.
- Your house rules. Parking, quiet hours and any shared yard go into the welcome book every guest gets.
- One contact for guests. Guests come to us, not to you or the people living in the main house.
- The listing. Photos, the listing and pricing, with your licence number shown.
- Between stays. Cleaning, laundry and repairs, so the space is ready for the next guest.
- The paperwork. Licensing support for the City licence and the provincial registration.
What stays with you
- Living there. Each of these rules turns on where you live, so meeting it is yours.
- The rest of the property. If another part of the house is rented long term, that tenancy stays between you and your tenant.
Questions suite owners ask
Can I live in the main house and rent my basement suite on Airbnb in Vancouver?
Not for stays under 90 days. In Vancouver you can rent a suite only if it is the unit you live in, and never the main house and the suite together.
I live in my laneway house. Can I host it while I travel?
In Vancouver, the unit you live in is the one you can licence, so a laneway house you live in can be it. The main house then stays out of short stays.
My suite has an interior door to the house. Does that make it one home?
Not for the Province. A space separate from where you live, sleep and eat is a secondary unit, even with an interior door.
My suite is in a strata townhouse. Does anything else apply?
Yes, your strata's bylaws. See condo and strata management for how they work.
Tell us about your suite or laneway home
Send us the address, the layout and who lives where. We check your city's rules and your own situation, and tell you what can be hosted. Owners anywhere in our service areas can ask for a free property review.
Checked on 14 November 2026: Province of BC, principal residence requirement, Province of BC, short-term rental registry, City of Vancouver, short-term rentals, City of Burnaby, short-term rentals, City of Burnaby, business licences and City of Surrey, short-term rentals. As read on 11 November 2026: City of Vancouver, long-term rental business licence.