Paramount, CA Accessory Structures: ADU Rental Restrictions (2026)

Section 17.104.210 of the Paramount Municipal Code sets the rental terms for accessory dwelling units. Subsection A allows an ADU or JADU to be rented separately from the primary residence, so the owner can lease the main house and the accessory unit to different households. Subsection B sets the floor on lease length: no ADU or JADU may be rented for a term that is less than 30 consecutive calendar days. A rental term shorter than that is not permitted anywhere in the City of Paramount.

The same subsection A bars separate sale. An ADU or JADU may not be sold or otherwise conveyed separately from the primary residence, except as allowed by section 17.104.150. That section opens a narrow door for a qualified buyer, including persons and families of low or moderate income, when the ADU or primary dwelling was built or developed by a qualified nonprofit corporation organized under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The sale also requires an enforceable recorded restriction, a recorded tenancy in common agreement with a repurchase option, a buyer-occupancy requirement, affordability restrictions lasting 45 years for owner-occupied units, and a recorded grant deed filed with a Preliminary Change of Ownership Report.

Section 17.104.150(B) adds one more route: an ADU on a property in the R-1 zone can be conveyed separately from the primary unit using an urban lot split, subject to Senate Bill 9 and section 17.08.130. Subsection C states that nothing in the section permits subdivisions otherwise prohibited by the Municipal Code or State law. Section 17.104.030 also limits what counts as a rental unit: a trailer, motor vehicle or other recreational vehicle cannot be used as an ADU or maintained as a habitable unit or living area on a residential lot.

Owner-occupancy is a separate question. Section 17.104.210(C) says it is not required for the primary residence or for any attached or detached ADU.