New Fire & Safety Codes in Sevier County

It’s the end of February and it has already been a very active real estate market here in Sevier County, Tennessee! Dani and I have been very busy assisting both Buyers and Sellers with their properties.

At our latest Monthly Meeting, our Broker, Deborah Korlin shared some very important information in regards to the new permits for Sevier County. Please take a look at her article and reach out to Myself or Dani if you need any assistance.

Written by
Deborah Korlin

In January, Sevier County implemented new Fire and Life Safety
Codes, and established an inspection program to enforce those
codes. We have been expecting this for some time, but it has been
unclear as to the timing and exactly what would be covered. As
many of you are aware, our region has been on a journey of making
changes that would ensure the safety of guests, particularly since
the dramatic fires that blew down from the Chimney Top area and
out of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park on November 23,
2016. Approximately 11,000 acres burned – more than 2% of the
entire park. Approximately 6,000 acres outside the park within
Sevier County burned as well and several people lost their lives in the fire that year.

Motivated by their desire to address fire and life safety, Sevier
County officials began working on guidelines and a permitting
process while deferring much – particularly the larger cabin
permitting of overnight rental cabins – to the State Fire Marshall’s
office. As of now they have completed their regulations and hired
staff inspectors. This will mark the beginning of Short-Term Rental
Unit (STRU) annual permits. This was a monumental task, but Jan. 1,
2024 ,they began receiving applications. Applications will be given an
appointment for inspection, they will continue to take permit
applications up to March 31. After that date, anyone operating a
STRU without a permit may be susceptible to a $50 per day fine and
will be required to meet the locally adopted fire and life safety codes.

The short-term rental permit fee is $250 for an occupancy of 12 or
less. 13 or more occupants is an additional $25 per occupant. The
inspections will be spread throughout the year and once a STRU is
approved it will be valid for 12 months from the date of issuance.

The Sevier County Fire & Rescue office is attempting to mail
every owner of property on short-term overnight rental an application
along with a letter that explains the process. However, many owners
may be difficult to locate. Therefore, I am writing this to help spread
the word. I want to make sure you are aware of this new permit
requirement. I would also ask that you contact anyone you think is a
STRU owner and give them a heads up. This is being widely published
locally, of course, but many of you are out of town and have LLC’s and bookkeepers who sort your mail so you may not find this communication readily.

The letter contains the items that the inspectors are looking for when
they make their visit to your STRU property. The information is also
available for review on their website at www.seviercountytn.gov, and you can send questions by email to
firecodequestion@seviercountytn.gov.

The Mission Statement of the Sevier County Fire & Rescue is to
protect our community from the perils of fire, explosions, and other
hazardous conditions. This mission will be accomplished through the
review of fire safety plans and sprinkler plan designs, fire investigations and fire inspections following the applicable regulations of Sevier County. We will actively participate with our community, Serve as role models, and strive to effectively and efficiently utilize all resources made available, to provide safety
and excellent customer service to the citizens, businesses and visitors of Sevier County.

Of course, we are here for you as well. Like you, we are eager to have
our properties inspected to see exactly what this is going to look like!
We can help you with evaluating your property for value, a sale, or
connect with you a contractor that you may need to help bring your cabin into code or address safety issues.