Sunnyvale, CA Accessory Structures: ADU Rental Restrictions (2026)
Key Facts
- Rule
- Post-2020 ADUs cannot be short-term rentals
- Pre-2020 ADUs
- Allowed as STR if host resides on the lot
- Urban lot split units
- Chapter 19.78 units never allowed as STR
- Governing sections
- SMC 19.79.040(r) and 19.76.040(a)(5)
- Ordinance
- Ord. 3240-25, effective 4/8/2025
Summary
Sunnyvale bars any accessory dwelling unit approved on or after January 1, 2020 from ever being used as a short-term rental. Section 19.79.040(r) makes the ban a permanent condition of the ADU itself, cross-referenced against the short-term rental chapter regardless of who lives on the property.
Short-Term Rentals. An accessory dwelling unit approved on or after January 1, 2020, shall not be used as a short-term rental as regulated by Chapter 19.76 of this code.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4856529; v14 updated 2026-05-19).
Full Breakdown
76. 040(a)(5), which draws the same line: ADUs approved on or after January 1, 2020 cannot host short-term rentals, but an ADU approved before that date may still be used as a short-term rental if the host resides on the lot containing the unit. 78 (dual urban opportunity units built on an urban lot split) is barred from short-term rental use outright, with no pre-2020 exception. 76 still cannot legally book short-term guests in a post-2020 ADU. The rule is meant to preserve newly created ADUs as long-term housing stock rather than allow them to be absorbed into the short-term rental market as soon as they are permitted.
Violations & Fines
Advertising or operating a post-2020 ADU as a short-term rental is treated as an unapproved short-term rental under Chapter 19.76: it does not qualify for hosted-rental approval under Section 19.76.050, and the city attorney may abate it as a public nuisance under Section 19.76.090.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I list my new backyard ADU on Airbnb in Sunnyvale?
Is an older ADU allowed to be a short-term rental in Sunnyvale?
Can a unit built through an urban lot split be a short-term rental?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sunnyvale
California rules heatmap·Compare Sunnyvale to another location·View the California accessory structures overview
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