Agnes Scott offers historic residences for short-term rental

Agnes Scott College recently announced that it is making available what it calls “a new kind of hospitality from a 136-year-old institution.” The college is offering for short-term rental three historic properties it declares to be “steps from Decatur Square, MARTA, Emory University, and the CDC.”  

The county defines short-term rental as “the rental of any room, lodging, or overnight accommodation for a period not exceeding 30 consecutive days, including properties advertised through platforms such as Airbnb, VRBO, Booking.com, and similar services.”  

Agnes Scott College announced that “three of its beautifully restored historic homes on West College Avenue will be available for short-term rental beginning June 1. Located directly across from the college’s iconic campus and just a short walk to Decatur Square, the properties offer travelers a rare opportunity to stay in the heart of one of metro Atlanta’s most beloved walkable neighborhoods.” 

Agnes Scott officials said the homes are desirable not only for their appealing details, but also for their location. “Each home is within a five-minute walk of Decatur Square’s award-winning restaurants, coffee shops, music venues, and boutique shopping, as well as the Decatur MARTA station — placing all of Atlanta within easy reach without a car,” according to the college’s announcement. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, it noted, is approximately 30 minutes away.  

According to the college, the three homes — Agnes Arbor, Irvine Place, and Magnolia Hideaway — together accommodate up to 26 guests and “are ideal for families, alumni, visiting scholars, wedding parties, sports tournaments, conference attendees, and business travelers connected to nearby Emory University, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, and downtown Atlanta.” 

“Agnes Scott College, founded in 1889, has long been a cornerstone of the Decatur community. Opening these homes for short-term stays extends the college’s tradition of warm hospitality to a broader community of visitors, while supporting the careful stewardship of these historic properties,” the announcement states. 

Agnes Arbor is a five-bedroom, three-bath residence with sleeping accommodations for up to 10 guests. It features a wraparound porch, formal dining room with seating for a crowd, and a quiet office/sitting room off the parlor, states the college, saying the house is “perfect for families or extended stays.” 

Irvine Place is a three-bedroom, two-bath craftsman bungalow with sleeping accommodations for six guests, with a bright kitchen, a 10-seat dining table, and a “welcoming” front porch. Describing the house as “charming,” Agnes Scott said Irving Place is “quiet, safe, and exceptionally convenient to Emory and the CDC.” 

Magnolia Hideaway is a five-bedroom, three-bath Victorian house with sleeping accommodations for up to 10 guests. It has what the college describes as a “family-friendly” bunk room, a breakfast bar, a six-seat dining table, and a “stunning ornate wraparound porch,” calling it “a commuter’s dream for guests balancing business and leisure.” 

Each facility rents fully furnished down to such details as bed linens, towels, hairdryers, irons, and such safety features as smoke alarms, carbon monoxide detectors, and fire extinguishers, the college states. The houses include full kitchens, four secure parking spaces and outdoors spaces from which renters “can enjoy Decatur’s tree-lined streets.” 

Despite the vintage styles of the homes, modern conveniences such as climate control, Smart TV, and high-speed internet included. 

The Agnes Scott rentals are subject to city of Decatur extended-stay regulations governing such issues as noise, nuisance activity and parking. The city’s regulations to a large extent overlap those in the DeKalb County program for extended-stay rentals, launched May 20. Both, for example, prohibit parties and other such events on extended-stay rental property.  

Agnes Scott has an additional layer of regulations, forbidding, for example, smoking, e-cigarettes and pets on the properties.