San Jose prohibits short-term rentals of ADUs and JADUs. Under SJMC 20.30.150 and SJMC 20.80.460, both ADUs and Junior ADUs may only be rented for terms of 31 days or longer. Hosted short-term rentals (under 30 days) are only allowed in the primary dwelling. Long-term rentals of standard ADUs face no owner-occupancy requirement, but JADUs remain tied to owner occupancy of either unit.
San Jose's short-term rental ordinance (SJMC 20.80.460) and the ADU section (SJMC 20.30.150) work together to bar Airbnb-style use of accessory units. The city's rationale, stated in the ordinance findings, is that ADUs are intended to expand the long-term rental housing stock. Any rental term of 30 days or fewer in an ADU is prohibited regardless of whether the host is on site. Long-term rentals (31 days or more) are permitted without owner occupancy under AB 976. The primary dwelling can be operated as a hosted short-term rental subject to the city's separate STR registration, transient occupancy tax, and the 60 nights-per-year cap for unhosted stays. JADUs (interior conversions up to 500 sq ft) are likewise long-term only and also carry the owner-occupancy deed restriction. Violations are tracked through STR platform data sharing under SJMC 20.80.460(F).
Operating an ADU as an Airbnb/Vrbo is a code violation under SJMC 20.80.460. First-offense administrative penalty is $1,500; subsequent violations within 12 months escalate to $3,000 per occurrence. The city may also revoke the underlying STR registration on the primary dwelling and refer for misdemeanor prosecution under SJMC 1.08.010.
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