Yavapai County, AZ Accessory Structures: ADU Rental Restrictions (2026)

Section 537(B)(7)(a) of the zoning ordinance affirmatively allows an ADU, or the single-family dwelling that shares its lot, to be used or advertised as separately leased long-term rental housing; the county doesn't treat renting out an ADU as converting the property to a multi-family use, and it doesn't strip the lot of its single-family status.

That flexibility comes with a use restriction, not a blanket permission. Section 537(B)(7)(c) states that an ADU 'whether or not it is used as a vacation or short-term rental, may not have nonresidential uses, including but not limited to those uses for a Special Event that would otherwise require a permit or license pursuant to Yavapai County Resolution No. 1752.' In practice, that bars using an ADU, or advertising it, for weddings, retreats, or other event bookings that would need a Special Event permit if held anywhere else in the county, whether the unit is rented long-term, short-term, or not rented at all.

The rental permission also doesn't erase other Section 537 obligations tied to renting a unit out: an owner still has to register a residential rental property with the County Assessor under A.R.S. §33-1902 (Section 537(B)(7)(b)), and if the ADU is used as a vacation or short-term rental, an owner-occupancy condition can apply depending on when the Certificate of Occupancy was issued (Section 537(B)(7)(d)).