Richmond does not permit an entire house or residential unit to be rented for fewer than 90 days. Room-based bed-and-breakfast or boarding stays can be allowed in the operator's principal residence, with City licensing requirements. Leaving an empty home with a manager does not make whole-home short stays permitted.
Sharing rooms without taking on every guest task
You do not need a finished hosting plan before talking to us. Tell us about the rooms and who lives in the home. We review it with our legal team and tell you whether the arrangement fits the rules and whether bnbHost can take it on.
- We start with the room arrangement. Our free review comes before photography or set-up, so you hear any obstacle first.
- We help with the application. Where we take on the home, we help prepare the City licence or provincial registration and keep the number on the listing.
- We present what guests will actually use. Photos and listing copy describe the guest rooms and shared spaces, with pricing and bookings handled for you.
- We handle arrivals and changeovers. Guest messages, keys, cleaning, laundry and repairs are part of our Richmond management service.
What stays with you
- Living in the home. The operator's principal residence is required; our management cannot replace that.
- Permission where required. Boarding in a strata home needs the strata council's permission.
Questions owners ask
Can I offer two guest rooms as boarding accommodation? Richmond limits boarding and lodging to two guests at a time, rather than two guests per room. We look at the proposed use during the review.
What about a 30-to-89-day boarding stay? The City's page and bylaw differ on whether this needs a licence, so we cannot confirm that point here.
BC's residence and registration rules also apply to room-based hosting. We check those alongside Richmond's conditions; see the BC rules guide.
Checked on 11 November 2026: City of Richmond, residential rentals.
General information, not legal advice.