Where short-term rentals are allowed in San Clemente, CA
San Clemente's zoning code treats a short-term rental as an inherently commercial use, legal only where the code lists it. A rental must still keep the look of a home, with no sign or lighting that reveals a lodging use. Weddings and bachelor parties are banned, since a unit may serve overnight lodging only.[4]
Every rule below links to the official source it comes from, verified October 2, 2026.
Can you rent short term in San Clemente?
Your zoning decides
What you apply for: Short-Term Lodging Unit (STLU) zoning permit
- Seasonal homes
- 1,523
- Housing units
- 27,058
- Residents
- 63,273
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates
- City ruleAllowed by zone
- City fee$140
- Tax on each stay10%
- Seasonal homes56 per 1,000
San Clemente short-term rental permit
To rent a San Clemente home for 29 days or less, an owner first needs a Short-Term Lodging Unit (STLU) zoning permit. An STLU operating license, valid 12 months from its issue date, is needed as well. The license stays with its owner, so a change of ownership ends it. Every rental agreement must let the owner end the stay and evict occupants after a violation. Guests pay a 10% transient occupancy tax, reported to the city every quarter. Advertising or running an STLU with no valid license is a misdemeanor.[7]
What San Clemente asks of you
Section 3.24.180 bars advertising, renting or operating an STLU without an STLU operating license. An STLU zoning permit is required on top of it.[7]
Advertising covers any medium, online included, that portrays a home as available to a renter on a short-term basis.[7]
Short term means occupancy of 29 or fewer consecutive calendar days. A partial day counts as a full one.[7]
Among residential zones, Table 17.32.030 opens STLUs only in the RH zone. Footnote 20 limits them to lots designated on the STLU Allowed Areas map.[6]
The city's STLU page says single-family homes in a low-density residential zone may not operate an STLU.[9]
A Short-Term Apartment Rental (STAR) may operate in residential zones closed to STLUs, with a STAR permit of its own.[6]
A STAR owner, or a property manager trained to city standards, sleeps in a unit on the property every night a STAR unit is rented.[4]
A STAR must sit at least 300 feet from every other STAR or STLU.[4]
Inside each STLU Allowed Area, STLUs other than STARs may not exceed 20 percent of the area's housing units.[4]
No STLU may operate in a unit under an affordable-housing restriction. Units in the Inclusionary Housing Program are excluded too.[4]
A single dwelling unit holds one STLU at most.[4]
Owners carry vacation rental property insurance that covers the commercial lodging use. Proof of it is resubmitted every year.[4]
A 24-hour emergency contact responds within 30 minutes to complaints, on site if requested.[4]
Owners within 300 feet receive written notice of the 24-hour phone numbers. The same notice states the maximum number of renters.[4]
Occupancy is two persons per legal bedroom plus two, never above 10. A unit with five or more legal bedrooms may ask the Community Development Director for a waiver.[4]
The owner displays a copy of the permit conspicuously inside the unit, next to house rules that meet the code.[4]
The planning page lists a one-time fee of $140 for the STLU zoning permit. The annual operating license costs $105.[8]
A STAR instead needs a one-time STAR permit of $536, approved by the Zoning Administrator, plus the same yearly license.[8]
The operating license is valid for 12 months from its issue date. A new one must be secured each year to keep operating.[7]
The zoning permit belongs to its owner and does not run with the land. Any change of ownership terminates it.[5]
As a condition of the permit, the owner records a covenant with the County Clerk-Recorder to notify the city of any change in ownership.[5]
The city's STLU page adds that the zoning permit expires when short-term rental use stops for a year. It also lapses if the license is not renewed.[9]
Every rental agreement must let the owner end the rental and evict the occupants upon a violation.[7]
Three violations at one STLU within 12 months lead to a hearing. The hearing officer may revoke the operating license.[7]
Operating an STLU without a valid operating license is a misdemeanor. The same penalty applies to advertising one without a license.[7]
Quarterly tax returns are due even for a quarter with no rentals. A late payment adds 10%, and another 10% once 30 days have passed.[7]
What California asks wherever you host
These rules apply at this address whatever the city decides.
No state license exists for short-term rentals in California. The state's 2025 act on booking platforms says it does not preempt a local short-term rental ordinance.[1]
Since July 1, 2024, every mandatory fee has to sit inside the rate you advertise. Only government taxes and fees may be added later.[2]
State law caps city fines when a short-term rental violation threatens health or safety. The first ceiling is $1,500. A second violation within the year reaches $3,000, each later one $5,000.[3]
What a guest pays on top of your nightly rate in San Clemente
Each layer is set by a different authority, and not all of them are collected by the platform.
| Layer | Rate | Remitted to |
|---|---|---|
| San Clemente transient occupancy tax[7] | 10% | The city |
| Total on a taxable stay | 10% |
Rentals with fewer than six lodging units file their return every quarter, within 30 days of the quarter's end. The city's tax page counts cleaning fees and key charges as part of the taxed rent.[10]
Airbnb taxes for hostsWhat the census counts
How much of San Clemente is already a second home
The Census Bureau counts 1,523 of San Clemente's 27,058 homes as vacant for seasonal, recreational or occasional use. That is 56 out of every 1,000. It ranks San Clemente 19th of the 42 California cities on this site for the share of its housing stock kept for part-year use.
- Rank in the state
- 19th of 42
- Share of housing
- 56 per 1,000
- Median home value
- $1,398,400
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 ACS 5-year estimates, tables B25004, B25001, B01003 and B25077.
Nearby and comparable
Where San Clemente sits among its neighbors
Los Angeles, CA
Primary residence only
With a Home-Sharing registration, for up to 120 days a year unless you hold Extended Home-Sharing.
Los Angeles short-term rental rulesDana Point, CA
Capped
1,744 seasonal homes, 106 per 1,000 housing units.
Dana Point short-term rental rulesNewport Beach, CA
Capped
2,356 seasonal homes, 52 per 1,000 housing units.
Newport Beach short-term rental rulesTwentynine Palms, CA
License required
572 seasonal homes, 54 per 1,000 housing units.
Twentynine Palms short-term rental rulesFAQ
San Clemente short-term rental questions
Can I rent my single-family home short term in San Clemente?
How much does an STLU permit cost in San Clemente?
What is the occupancy limit for a San Clemente short-term rental?
How often do San Clemente hosts file the occupancy tax?
Sources
- Short-Term Rental Facilitator Act of 2025 (SB 346), Government Code sections 50990 to 50996, California Legislative Information, read on October 1, 2026
- Business and Professions Code section 17568.6, lodging price display, California Legislative Information, read on October 1, 2026
- Government Code section 36900, fines for city ordinance violations, California Legislative Information, read on October 1, 2026
- Municipal Code, Section 17.28.292: Short Term Lodging Units, City of San Clemente, read on October 2, 2026
- Municipal Code, Section 17.16.145: Short-term Lodging Unit (STLU) Zoning Permit, City of San Clemente, read on October 2, 2026
- Municipal Code, Table 17.32.030: Residential Zone Uses, City of San Clemente, read on October 2, 2026
- Municipal Code, Chapter 3.24: Transient Occupancy Tax, City of San Clemente, read on October 2, 2026
- Planning Services, City of San Clemente, read on October 2, 2026
- Short-Term Lodging Units (STLU), City of San Clemente, read on October 2, 2026
- Transient Occupancy Taxes (TOT), City of San Clemente, read on October 2, 2026
This page is not legal advice. It summarizes the official sources listed on this page as they read on October 2, 2026. Rules can change after that date, so check with the issuing office before you apply or publish a listing.
Before you list
Free tools for new hosts
Short-term rental agreement generator
Parties, dates, rent, deposit checked against your state's cap, and the house rules clauses you enforce. A signed-ready PDF for direct and Vrbo bookings.
Airbnb host fee calculator
What Airbnb takes on a booking under the 15.5% host-only fee or the old split fee, what the guest pays on top, and the payout that reaches you.
Airbnb profit calculator
Nightly rate, occupancy, Airbnb fee, management, mortgage, taxes and depreciation. You get cash flow, cash-on-cash return and what is left after the IRS.
Airbnb cleaning checklist generator
Build a printable turnover checklist by room, with restock, photos to take and a place for the cleaner to sign. Free PDF, no sign-up.