Santa Cruz, CA short-term rental permit

What Santa Cruz asks of you

• The code calls the required document a short-term rental permit. Offering a dwelling for thirty days or less without one is unlawful.^[5]

• The code caps hosted short-term rentals at 250, counting existing and new ones together.^[5]

• Hosted applications are taken first come, first served. The city reports no waitlist at present.^[4]

• No new non-hosted short-term rental is allowed. An existing one is a rental that held a tax registration certificate before September 26, 2017.^[5]

• The fee schedule lists the Residential Short-Term Rental Permit at $341.00 for 2026. Its 6% technology surcharge column is ticked, and no total is printed.^[6]

• The city describes the permit fee as one-time and non-refundable, paid at application submittal.^[4]

• A hosted applicant supplies three proofs of principal residency, starting with the county assessor's homeowners exemption.^[4]

• A property with a single-family home plus an accessory dwelling unit is not approved for a permit on either one.^[4]

• The site plan must show 1 parking space for a studio or one-bedroom residence. A residence with 2 bedrooms upward needs 2 spaces.^[4]

• After the permit is issued, the owner enrolls in the city's Rental Inspection Service, whose fee is paid annually.^[4]

• Overnight, the code counts two occupants for each bedroom. The unit as a whole may add two more, whatever their age.^[5]

• The code starts quiet hours at 10:00 p.m., amplified noise included. At 8:00 a.m., they end.^[5]

• The local contact person must live within twenty miles. That person must be able to physically respond within thirty minutes of a complaint.^[5]

• A sign listing the local contact sits no more than twenty feet back from the nearest street. It may not exceed 216 square inches.^[5]

• The permit lapses automatically if the unit is not used as a short-term rental for two full years.^[5]

• The code lets an owner of several existing rentals select two of them for continued use after a three-year period.^[5]

• The city's hosted Conditions of Approval say that same owner may select only one of the short-term rentals.^[9]

• On trash, the code allows containers in public view from 5:00 p.m. the day before until 8:00 p.m. on collection day.^[5]

• The Conditions of Approval instead ask for containers out by 5:00 a.m. on collection day, or the evening before.^[9]

• The first two violations in a one-year period are infractions, with a fine set by City Council resolution. Three violations within one year constitute a misdemeanor, punishable by a $1,000 fine.^[5]

• In a civil action, a court may assess up to $2,500 per violation for each day it continues.^[5]

• The City Council adopted the ordinance in October 2017. It became effective with Coastal Commission approval in April 2018.^[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]