STRWATCH.AI / CA / Palm Springs

Is a short-term rental legal in Palm Springs, CA?

HEAVILY REGULATED

Palm Springs permits vacation rentals (owner absent) and homeshares (owner on-site throughout the stay) as ancillary residential uses under Municipal Code Chapter 5.25, amended by Ordinance 2133 on July 8, 2026.

See permits and requirements

Sources checked8 open items listed below

Unhosted rentals require an annual certificate and must remain ancillary and secondary to residential use. Standard new certificates cannot exceed the 20% neighborhood cap; complete applications are prioritized by filing date when capacity becomes available. Junior certificates are exempt from that cap. Homeshares require owner presence throughout the stay and complaint-response ability within 30 minutes. Section 5.25.078(b) describes vacation-rental reclassification when the owner does not live on-site and cannot respond within 30 minutes; absence also fails the homesharing definition. Homesharing covers eligible portions of single-family/duplex units, condominiums, casitas and other permanent structures; ADUs/JADUs cannot rent for fewer than 30 days regardless of creation date. Apartments are generally prohibited; §5.25.075(e) preserves a specific exception for buildings meeting R-1 building/fire occupancy requirements with an apartment certificate issued before April 15, 2016, including exceptions to owner and contract caps. The one-certificate/financial-interest limit has a limited exception for compliant specific rentals held under certificates issued before January 10, 2017. Ordinary overnight occupancy is two guests per bedroom, maximum eight plus up to two children age 12 or under; approved estate-home bedrooms allow up to twelve plus two such children. There is no single citywide guest limit or rental-duration exemption covering every property and tax. Up to four additional daytime guests are allowed from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.; overnight vehicles are one per bedroom, with two additional daytime vehicles.

Permits and requirements

Vacation Rental Registration Certificate Cost not verified
City of Palm Springs
Renewal: Annual, requires passing building/fire/safety inspection
Required before vacation-rental use and annually thereafter. Complete owner/financial-interest, property, bedroom/occupancy, local-contact, TOT-permit, insurance, indemnification and private-restriction documents; pass inspection and correct deficiencies. The 20% neighborhood cap applies to standard new certificates, with filing-date priority when capacity opens. Annual contracts are 26 for New Permittees and 32 plus four contracts wholly within July–September for Existing Permittees; event-house events count. General owner financial-interest limit is one certificate, subject to §5.25.040(c)'s specific pre-January 10, 2017 exception. On sale, certificate expires; new owner must apply anew. Agent/material changes require registration and fee within seven days; cancel within seven days after sale or cessation. Current fee amount remains unverified. Fees for annual registration, estate-home land-use and TOT permits are non-refundable under §5.25.060(b)(2). Residential real-estate closing documents must include the city's Vacation Rental Disclosure Form.
official source
Junior Vacation Rental Registration Certificate Cost not verified
City of Palm Springs
Renewal: Annual
Limited to six vacation-rental contracts per calendar year and excluded from neighborhood density caps. Other applicable operational, tax and enforcement rules remain. Current registration fee could not be reverified.
official source
Homeshare Registration Certificate Cost not verified
City of Palm Springs
Renewal: Annual
Owner must live on-site throughout the hosted stay and be able to respond to complaints within 30 minutes. No annual contract cap or contract-summary filing. Multiple rooms may be rented separately. One-certificate financial-interest limitation applies equally across homeshare and vacation-rental certificates. Current fee could not be reverified. A homesharing property with five or more bedrooms also requires an estate-home land-use permit. Eligible ownership excludes business entities; qualifying trusts and entities consisting solely of no more than four natural persons must disclose their interests.
official source
Annual Building, Fire and Safety Inspection Cost not verified
City of Palm Springs
Renewal: Required at each new application and annual renewal
Complete building, fire and safety inspection and all corrections at initial application; secure inspection annually before renewal. Inspections verify qualified bedrooms and operating compliance. Homeshares require the same inspections and pool/spa certifications. Current inspection checklist and certification frequencies were not recovered.
official source
Liability Insurance Cost not verified
City of Palm Springs
Renewal: Must be maintained for the full term of the certificate
Vacation-rental owners must maintain commercial insurance covering STR use with minimum limits set by the city manager. The current VR minimum and per-occurrence wording could not be reverified from the blocked administrative materials. Homeshare owners must maintain an acceptable general liability policy with at least $500,000 coverage throughout the certificate and renewals (§5.25.078(c)(4)).
official source
Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) Permit $25 (one-time, non-refundable)
City of Palm Springs
A $25 application fee applies to each TOT permit; §5.25.060(b)(2)(C) identifies the fee as one-time and non-refundable. No fixed renewal cycle is established. Maintain the permit in effect and post it conspicuously. File and remit monthly by the last working day of the following month, including zero-rental months; retain tax records four years. Taxable rent is not reduced by platform commissions or other business expenses. Separately, §3.24.090 requires notice to the tax administrator ten days before sale or cessation of the business, with returns and remittance immediately due on sale/cessation. This does not replace the Chapter 5.25 certificate-cancellation requirement after sale. The §3.24.020 hotel definition excludes individually owned homes rented only occasionally and incidentally to normal owner/family occupancy, but the owner/operator must establish that status with the tax administrator. Section 3.24.040 exemptions require a prescribed perjury-signed claim when rent is collected and cover legally immune persons/occupancies and qualifying foreign-government officers/employees. Returns include uncollected and exempt rents with itemized explanations; the rent definition disclaims tax liability on uncollected rent while §3.24.080 states remittance on chargeable nonexempt rent, so confirm handling with Finance. The administrator may set other reporting periods and require a deposit, bond or trust account. Purchasers/successors must address outstanding taxes and withholding under §§3.24.220–.230; the certificate's nontransferability does not extinguish tax liability.
official source
Estate Home Land Use Permit Cost not verified
City of Palm Springs Planning
Estate homes have five or more bedrooms and require an owner-specific land-use permit under §93.23.16; it does not run with the land. Approved additional bedrooms may increase overnight occupancy to twelve guests plus two children age 12 or under. Owners with active vacation-rental certificates on February 8, 2017 receive estate land-use permits subject to conditions. A third qualified violation within 24 months triggers potential Planning Commission revocation/modification at a noticed hearing: hearing 10–30 days after owner notification, decision within 30 days after hearing conclusion, filing with Council within 15 days. The Commission's action is final unless appealed to Council; Chapter 2.05 requires a written appeal and fee within 15 days of notice of the action, distinct from STR certificate discipline under Chapter 2.50. General §94.02.01 procedures include application, site plan and non-refundable fee; Director decisions may be requested for Commission review in writing within five days. Estate-specific owner/transfer and disciplinary provisions control over inconsistent general permit rules. Permit-specific conditions may restrict duration, guests and vehicles. Current fee, fixed renewal cycle and administrative addendum remain unverified; confirm how the general one-year noncommencement/six-month inactivity provisions apply to an estate permit. No permission for more than six approved rental bedrooms is established.
official source
Contract Summary Tool filing (per stay) Cost not verified
City of Palm Springs
Renewal: Filed in advance of each guest stay
Before each applicable vacation-rental occupancy, file and post the approved written-contract summary; this includes friends/family stays. Up to five persons designated at application/renewal may stay free without counting toward annual contracts, but their stays still require summaries and compliance. Contracts retained at least four years; responsible renter identification retained at least 30 days. Homeshares are exempt from summaries.
official source
24/7 local contact and complaint response Cost not verified
City of Palm Springs
Renewal: Continuous
Provide a 24-hour contact able to respond on site. After enforcement-official notification, respond by telephone within 15 minutes; after that interval, unresolved complaints require in-person response within 30 minutes. Contact address may use the rental address only if present throughout every contract.
official source
Annual city education and test Cost not verified
City of Palm Springs
Renewal: Annual
Each applicant, owner and agent/representative must participate in annual city education and pass the required test before issuance or renewal. Homeshare owners and guest-facing representatives must participate in the education program.
official source
Guest agreement, check-in and operating rules Cost not verified
City of Palm Springs
Renewal: Each stay and continuous operations
Responsible renter must be at least 25; obtain written agreement, renter identification, named guest list, guest vehicle list including license plates, Good Neighbor Brochure and acknowledgment of occupancy/noise/parking rules. Meet before or within 24 hours of arrival and obtain responsible-party/all-adult signatures; live two-way video and qualifying certificate-based digital signatures are allowed. Sound-producing devices must be inside the fully enclosed unit and inaudible at the property line. Post certificate, occupancy, contact, rules and trash details. Trash must be screened except proper collection containers 5 a.m.–8 p.m. on collection day; walk-in trash service required unless approved alternative, with homeshare opt-out available. Clusters/compounds are prohibited. Home repairs, yard maintenance and pool cleaning must obey §§11.74.041, 11.74.042 and 8.04.220; their specific schedules require confirmation.
official source
City account number in advertisements Cost not verified
City of Palm Springs
Renewal: Continuous
Display certificate and maximum guests in the unit and advertising. Every advertisement's property-description section must prominently state 'The City of Palm Springs Account #' followed by the unique account number; platform technical issues do not excuse omissions.
official source

The full picture

Palm Springs permits vacation rentals (owner absent) and homeshares (owner on-site throughout the stay) as ancillary residential uses under Municipal Code Chapter 5.25, amended by Ordinance 2133 on July 8, 2026. Covered stays are 28 consecutive days or less; longer stays fall outside this chapter, not all housing rules. Annual city registration, building/fire/safety inspection, liability insurance, and a $25 TOT permit are required. Standard vacation rentals face a 20% neighborhood density cap and 26 annual contracts for New Permittees (complete application after October 17, 2022), or 32 plus up to four wholly third-quarter contracts for Existing Permittees. Junior certificates permit six contracts annually and are exempt from the density cap; homeshares have no annual contract cap. Ordinary overnight occupancy is two guests per bedroom, up to eight, plus two children age 12 or under; approved estate homes may accommodate up to twelve plus two such children. Generally one certificate per owner, with a limited pre-2017 exception. Apartments are generally prohibited, subject to a narrow pre-2016 R-1 building exception; ADUs/JADUs cannot rent for fewer than 30 days. TOT is 11.5% for taxable stays of 28 consecutive calendar days or less; the separate 1% GPSTBID assessment covers stays of 27 days or less. Current registration and estate-permit fees could not be independently reverified.

Taxes on guests & hosts

TaxRateApplies toPlatform collectsOfficial source
Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) 11.5% Taxable vacation-rental and homeshare stays of 28 consecutive calendar days or less; partial days count as full days and interrupted stays do not aggregate. Subject to documented exclusions and exemptions. The 13.5% rate applies only to Group Meeting hotels. Not verified source
Greater Palm Springs Tourism Business Improvement District (GPSTBID) Assessment 1% Gross vacation-rental revenue on stays of 27 consecutive days or less within the GPSTBID, including Palm Springs; remit to the city with TOT Not verified source

Enforcement

PenaltiesUnder §5.25.090, general administrative citations are $500 first and $1,000 subsequent; third violation in twelve months requires two-year suspension. Failure to remit TOT after written notice requires twelve-month suspension. Unregistered operation entails TOT, penalties/interest, $5,000 fine and permanent ineligibility; continued unregistered operation incurs $10,000, with later escalation by council resolution. Advertising-certificate, contract/summary, or timely full TOT-payment offenses entail $2,500 and six-month suspension first, then $5,000 and revocation second. Failure to comply with police orders results in revocation; suspension/revocation appeals follow Chapter 2.50. Trash-service violations carry administrative penalties but do not count as suspension strikes. Late TOT incurs greater of $50 or 10% plus 1% monthly interest; fraud adds 100% of tax and penalties. Separately, California Government Code §36900(d) provides $1,500/$3,000/$5,000 maximums for qualifying health/safety STR infractions, excludes first-time failure-to-register/license-fee offenses, and requires a hardship-waiver process; those are not a replacement schedule for every city administrative or misdemeanor offense. Except for trash-service violations, §5.25.090(j) authorizes administrative citations without the otherwise required pre-citation or courtesy notice; criminal, civil and administrative remedies are cumulative.
Platform liabilityOrdinance 2133 added PSMC §3.24.085 implementing California's STR Facilitator Act. Facilitators must report prior-month physical addresses including nine-digit ZIP by the last working day of the following month; APN, listing URL and unit-identification details may be requested when needed. Every listing must include city account number and issued TOT certification; booking transactions are prohibited unless the vacation rental/homeshare appears on the city registry at the time the platform receives its fee. Reporting violations use §5.25.090(a) penalties; listing/registry violations use §5.25.090(d). State Government Code §50993(d) permits monthly reporting where TOT remittance is monthly; §50995 provides conditional audit authority. These provisions do not by themselves prove current platform tax collection. Owners/agents retain city tax duties; confirm platform statements before claiming remittance.
NotesCode enforcement is administered under Chapter 5.25. Owners remain responsible despite appointing agents. HOA/deed-restricted applications and renewals require a dated official-letterhead HOA/management letter confirming no restriction prohibiting or limiting the proposed use. Changed restrictive documents must be reported within 30 calendar days; inconsistent certificates are revoked, with appeal and later reapplication if eligibility returns. Failure to report can generate $500 then $1,000 per subsequent guest stay, total capped at $5,000. Live hotline number and administrative forms were not independently reread because city access was blocked. TOT has a separate assessment hearing: §3.24.120 allows written request within 10 days of service/mailing. Further appeal is unresolved because the referenced §3.24.130 is missing from the current chapter. Tax permits may be revoked/suspended after a noticed hearing with 10 days' written notice; operations without a valid permit may be closed. Tax enforcement also includes liens and collection remedies, independently of STR certificate discipline. Signed Ordinance 2133 §9 changes §2.50.080(a) to a written appeal to the Clerk within 30 days of the action, including grounds, requested relief and the required fee. It leaves subsection (b)'s older 10-day mailing/15-day no-mail language unchanged; confirm the controlling deadline promptly rather than relying on the longest period.

What we could not verify (8)

  • Current city program/application/FAQ, comprehensive fee schedule, inspection forms and administrative-regulation documents returned HTTP 403; browser recovery found no available browser. Registration, Junior, Homeshare and estate-permit cost fields are null. Do not promote previously reported $1,046/$523/$261/$647 or characterize historical application-page amounts as a current conflict without reading the currently effective schedule.
  • Signed Ordinance 2133 was recovered and fully read. Its §9 changes §2.50.080(a) to 30 days from the action, but does not amend §2.50.080(b)'s older 10-day mailing/15-day no-mail wording. Confirm the applicable appeal deadline promptly with the Clerk; do not assume 30 days safely overrides every notice. The March 11, 2026 tribal notice terminates the December 15, 1998 land-use coordination agreement on certain parcels; parcel scope, delivery-based termination date and resulting city/tribal approval responsibilities require separate confirmation.
  • Current vacation-rental insurance minimum, inspection checklist, pool/spa certification frequency and any additional city-manager administrative conditions require the blocked current official administrative materials; the code's homeshare $500,000 minimum is verified.
  • Current Airbnb/Vrbo remittance of Palm Springs TOT and GPSTBID is not confirmed. The official tourism agency's June 2026 Airbnb TBID collection announcement expressly applies to unincorporated Riverside County, not proof for Palm Springs; collectedByPlatform remains null.
  • Current neighborhood density counts/address waitlists were not reread; draft states the enacted 20% rule, not a live count. No comprehensive official docket search establishes absence of pending litigation.
  • The estate land-use permit's current fee, fixed renewal interval and administrative addendum remain unverified. Incorporated §§94.02.01 and 94.09.00 and Chapter 2.05 were read; confirm permit-specific conditions and how general noncommencement/inactivity rules apply to estate permits. Maintenance schedules under §§11.74.041, 11.74.042 and 8.04.220 were not independently recovered in a current version.
  • There is no uniform occupancy maximum or rental-duration exemption across ordinary homes, estate homes, ADUs/JADUs and taxes. The TOT permit fee is expressly one-time and non-refundable, but a fixed permit-renewal interval was not established.
  • TOT §3.24.120 provides a written assessment-hearing request within 10 days after service/mailing, but refers onward to §3.24.130, which is absent from the current chapter. Current further appeal/refund procedures and the apparent uncollected-rent/remittance wording require confirmation; do not assume STR certificate appeals or an automatic tax exemption apply.

Sources

A markdown mirror of this page lives at /palm-springs-ca.md for AI tools and researchers.

STRWatch publishes educational information about short-term rental regulation, checked against the official sources linked above as of the date shown. It is not legal advice, and rules change — a city can move between the times we check it. For decisions with money at stake, confirm with the authority linked above or a local attorney.