Merced County, CA Accessory Structures: ADU Rental Restrictions (2026)

270(C)(2) states that short-term rentals shall not be permitted in any non-habitable structures, tent, yurt, recreational vehicle, or any other provision intended for temporary occupancy, and specifically extends the ban to additional dwelling units and accessory dwelling units. The same provision also blocks short-term rental use in any structure or dwelling carrying a County covenant or agreement restricting its use, naming affordable housing units, agricultural employee units, farmworker housing units, and farm family units, as well as any dwelling on land under a Williamson Act contract.

This means an ADU or JADU built on a parcel cannot be listed or operated as a hosted or vacation rental even if the primary residence on the same parcel qualifies as a short-term rental; the short-term use is confined to the single-family dwelling itself. The restriction is separate from, and layered on top of, the one-rental-per-parcel cap and owner-occupancy requirement that apply to the primary dwelling under the same section.