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HEAVILY REGULATEDevery claim verified 2026-07-16 against the sources below

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

Palm Springs allows short-term 'vacation rentals' (unhosted, owner not present) and 'homeshares' (owner present) only as ancillary uses of single-family homes, and only under Chapter 5.25 of the Municipal Code (restated by Ordinance 2075, adopted Nov 28, 2022). A rental is any stay of 28 consecutive days or less; stays of 29+ days are unregulated. Each requires an annual Vacation Rental/Homeshare Registration Certificate, an annual building/fire/safety inspection, proof of at least $500,000 liability insurance, and a $25 Transient Occupancy Tax permit. Per Resolution 25344 (adopted Sept 25, 2025, effective Dec 1, 2025) the annual registration fee is $1,046 for a Vacation Rental, $523 for a Junior Vacation Rental (limited to 6 contracts/year, exempt from the density cap), and $261 for a Homeshare. Annual contract caps: New Permittees (application filed after Oct 17, 2022) are limited to 26 rental contracts per calendar year; Existing Permittees (on/before Oct 17, 2022) are limited to 32, plus up to 4 additional third-quarter contracts (36 max) — Ordinance 2118 (adopted Nov 12, 2025) cancelled a reduction that was to take effect Jan 1, 2026. A 20% neighborhood density cap applies (no new certificate where a neighborhood is already at or above 20% vacation-rental-to-household ratio); roughly 10 of 66 neighborhoods are at the cap. Occupancy is 2 overnight guests per bedroom (1BR=2 up to 6BR=12) plus 2 minors age 12 and under; estate homes (5+ bedrooms) need a Land Use Permit and are capped at 5-6 bedroom use. An owner may hold only one certificate. Taxes are 11.5% Transient Occupancy Tax plus a 1% GPSTBID assessment on stays under 28 days. Operating without a certificate triggers TOT liability plus penalties/interest, a $5,000 administrative fine, and permanent ineligibility to operate a vacation rental in the city.

At a glance

Unhosted whole-home rentalConditional
Hosted rental (host present)Yes
Primary residence requiredNo
Guest capNone verified
Rules apply to stays under29 days

Unhosted whole-home rentals ('Vacation Rentals') are permitted but conditional on obtaining a Vacation Rental Registration Certificate AND the property's neighborhood being below the 20% density cap (PSMC Ch. 5.25 / Ordinance 2075); new certificates are not issued in neighborhoods at or above 20% vacation-rental-to-household ratio. Hosted rentals ('Homeshares', owner present for the entire stay) are permitted with a Homeshare certificate and are exempt from annual contract limits and the Contract Summary Tool. A 'vacation rental' is a rental of a single-family dwelling for 28 consecutive days or less without the owner present; stays of 29 days or more are long-term and not regulated by the ordinance. Only single-family dwellings qualify — rentals in apartments are prohibited. An owner may benefit from only one Vacation Rental or Homeshare certificate at a time. max_guests is bedroom-dependent: overnight occupancy is 2 per bedroom (1BR=2, 2BR=4, 3BR=6, 4BR=8, 5BR=10, 6BR=12) plus two minors age 12 and under; daytime occupancy is overnight +4. Estate Homes (single-family dwellings with 5+ bedrooms) require a Land Use Permit and certificates are issued only for 5- or 6-bedroom use regardless of total bedrooms.

What you need to operate

RequirementAuthorityCostOfficial source
Vacation Rental Registration Certificate City of Palm Springs, Department of Special Program Compliance (DSPC)
Required for unhosted whole-home short-term rentals under PSMC Ch. 5.25. Fee set by Resolution 25344 (adopted Sept 25, 2025, effective Dec 1, 2025). Subject to 20% neighborhood density cap and annual contract limits (26/year New Permittees; 32 + up to 4 Q3 = 36/year Existing Permittees). One certificate per owner.
 $1,046 per year (new/annual)
renewal: Annual, requires passing building/fire/safety inspection
 source
Junior Vacation Rental Registration Certificate City of Palm Springs, DSPC
Reduced-fee certificate limited to 6 rental contracts per year. Neighborhood percentage (density) caps do NOT apply to Junior certificates. All other operational, TOT, and penalty rules apply. Fee per Resolution 25344 (effective Dec 1, 2025).
 $523 per year (new/annual)
renewal: Annual
 source
Homeshare Registration Certificate City of Palm Springs, DSPC
For hosted stays of 28 consecutive days or less where the owner is present during the entire stay. Exempt from annual contract limits and the Contract Summary Tool requirement. Fee per Resolution 25344 (effective Dec 1, 2025).
 $261 per year (new/annual)
renewal: Annual
 source
Annual Building, Fire and Safety Inspection City of Palm Springs, DSPC
DSPC schedules and conducts an annual safety inspection; owner, agent, or representative must be present. First step in a multi-department permit approval process. Verified from the official Vacation Rental FAQ PDF (dated 11.5.25).
 Not verified
renewal: Required at each new application and annual renewal
 source
Liability Insurance City of Palm Springs, DSPC
Owner must carry a short-term rental or personal liability policy with a minimum limit of $500,000 per occurrence. City need not be named as additional insured. Evidence required at application. Verified from official VR FAQ PDF and the Vacation Rental Certificate page.
 Not verified
renewal: Must be maintained for the full term of the certificate
 source
Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) Permit City of Palm Springs, Finance & Treasury
A separate TOT permit is required to register for and remit transient occupancy tax. Verified from the official Vacation Rental Certificate application page and FAQ PDF.
 $25 (one-time, non-refundable)
renewal: One-time
 source
Estate Home Land Use Permit City of Palm Springs, DSPC / Planning
Required for Estate Homes — single-family dwellings with 5 or more bedrooms. Certificates issued only for 5- or 6-bedroom use. Fee $647 per Resolution 25344 (effective Dec 1, 2025); note the VR Certificate page separately lists $453 for this permit (see needs_review).
 $647 (one-time)
renewal: One-time (with addendum requirements)
 source
Contract Summary Tool filing (per stay) City of Palm Springs, DSPC
Vacation Rental operators must submit a Contract Summary in advance of each guest stay using the online tool (requires City ID number and TOT number). Used to enforce annual contract caps. Does NOT apply to Homeshares. Verified from official VR FAQ PDF.
 Not verified
renewal: Filed in advance of each guest stay
 source

Taxes on guests & hosts

TaxRateApplies toPlatform collectsOfficial source
Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) 11.5% Vacation rentals and homeshares (transient stays of 28 days or less); 13.5% rate applies only to Group Meeting hotels Not verified source
Greater Palm Springs Tourism Business Improvement District (GPSTBID) Assessment 1% Gross rental revenue on vacation rental and homeshare short-term stays of less than 28 days (assessment effective since July 1, 2021) No source

Enforcement

PenaltiesOperating a vacation rental without a valid registration certificate makes the operator liable for transient occupancy tax under PSMC Ch. 3.24 (including penalties and interest), a $5,000.00 administrative fine, and permanent ineligibility to operate a vacation rental in the City (per PSMC Ch. 5.25 and the official VR FAQ). Statewide, California SB 60 (2021, Chapter 307; Gov. Code 25132 & 36900) caps fines for health-or-safety-infraction violations of an STR ordinance at $1,500 (first), $3,000 (second within a year), and $5,000 (each additional within a year).
Platform liabilityCalifornia SB 346 (2025, Chapter 751; signed Oct 13, 2025, effective Jan 1, 2026) authorizes cities/counties to require short-term rental facilitators (Airbnb, Vrbo, etc.) to report property data (physical address incl. 9-digit ZIP, and if needed APN/listing URL) no more often than quarterly, to include any local license number and TOT certification in listings, and imposes administrative fines and audit authority for non-compliance.
NotesEnforcement administered by the Department of Special Program Compliance (DSPC). A 24/7 Vacation Rental Hotline ((760) 322-8383) handles active complaints. Operational standard conditions include no outside amplified music/noise, one car per bedroom, and trash/screening rules. HOA properties may register only with a letter from the HOA board/management confirming STR use does not violate the CC&Rs.

Pending changes

What we could not verify (5)

  • Vacation Rental annual registration fee: the main VR program page cites $1,046 per Resolution 25344 (effective Dec 1, 2025), but the Vacation Rental Certificate application page lists $1,072 (and Estate Home Land Use Permit at $453 vs $647 on the program page). Could not reconcile which figure is currently charged — the $1,046/$647 figures have a clear resolution and effective date so were used as primary; verify against the live Comprehensive Fee Schedule.
  • Municipal code section text (ecode360.com / library.qcode.us) could not be fetched directly — both portals return HTTP 403 to non-interactive requests and render section text via JavaScript. Contract caps, occupancy limits, definitions, and penalties were verified from official City program pages and the official Vacation Rental FAQ PDF rather than from the primary code section text itself; recommend a manual read of PSMC 5.25.070 (operational requirements) and 5.25.060 (application) to confirm exact statutory wording.
  • Fetch-method note (CEO review 2026-07-16): palmspringsca.gov blocks all non-interactive access (Akamai 403, incl. headless browser), so city-page claims were verified against Internet Archive captures of the exact official URLs — program page snapshot 2026-05-10, VR FAQ PDF snapshot 2026-04-26 (both post-date the Dec 1, 2025 fee change). Review pass independently re-fetched both archives and confirmed fees ($1,046/$523/$261/$647), contract caps (26; 32+4 Q3), Ordinance 2118, 20% density cap, 28-day definition, $500K insurance, $5,000 penalty, 11.5% TOT, and the occupancy chart verbatim. SB 60/SB 346 verified live on leginfo.legislature.ca.gov. Re-verify against the live pages when the watch pipeline or a browser session can reach them.
  • Whether platforms (Airbnb/Vrbo) directly collect and remit the 11.5% TOT for Palm Springs listings could not be confirmed from an official source; owner/operator is the responsible remitter of record.
  • Exact current count of neighborhoods at or above the 20% density cap (reported as ~10 of 66) is from secondary sources; the official Vacation Rental Density webpage/map should be consulted for the live count.

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, verified against the official sources linked above as of the date shown. It is not legal advice, and rules change — a city can move between our verification passes. For decisions with money at stake, confirm with the authority linked above or a local attorney.