Shaping the Future of Short-Term Rentals in Dwellingup Town and Surrounding Rural Localities

Published on Thursday, 29 January 2026 at 11:39:12 AM

The Shire of Murray is currently preparing a new local planning policy to guide the future development of Unhosted Short-Term Rental Accommodation (STRA), such as Airbnb.

While the policy will apply across the Shire, Dwellingup’s circumstances warrant closer consideration. The town has become a popular tourism and recreation destination, delivering important economic benefits. At the same time, Dwellingup has a small and declining permanent population and a limited supply of housing.

In this context, the policy will guide how new unhosted STRA applications are assessed, with the aim of understanding how visitor accommodation can be balanced with the need to retain sufficient permanent housing to support a stable, liveable community.

No decisions have been made at this stage. This survey is intended to gather community views to inform the preparation of a draft local planning policy, which would be advertised separately for formal public comment before adoption.

Your feedback will help Council understand whether any additional planning controls are needed in Dwellingup and, if so, what form they should take.  For the purpose of this survey ‘Dwellingup’ includes the town and the surrounding rural localities.

The survey is open until 4.30pm, 24 February 2026. All feedback will be considered and summarised in a report to Council.

Dean Unsworth

Chief Executive Officer

Online Survey