13 verified short-term rentals rules for Riverside, California, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
The City of Riverside requires short-term rental operators to register and obtain a Transient Occupancy Tax certificate. All STR operators must comply with applicable zoning, building, and fire codes. The city collects 13% TOT on all lodging stays under 30 days.
Riverside short-term rentals must comply with the citywide 10 PM-7 AM quiet hours and the STR ordinance (Ord. 7439) prohibiting outdoor amplified sound after 10 PM.
Riverside short-term rentals pay a 13% Transient Occupancy Tax plus 2% Tourism Business Improvement District assessment and an annual STR registration fee.
Riverside short-term rentals must provide one on-site parking space per bedroom and prohibit guest parking on lawns or blocking sidewalks under RMC Chapter 5.72.
Riverside caps short-term rental occupancy at two persons per bedroom plus two additional guests, with a daytime-visitor cap, under RMC Chapter 5.72.
Riverside short-term rental hosts must carry liability insurance of at least $500,000, or operate through a platform providing equivalent coverage, under RMC Chapter 5.72.
Non-owner-occupied short-term rentals in Riverside face an annual rental-night cap under RMC Chapter 5.72, with owner-occupied units generally unrestricted.
Riverside requires all short-term rentals to register annually with the Finance Department under RMC Chapter 5.72 (Ord. 7439), obtain a TOT certificate, and post the permit number in every listing.
Riverside distinguishes hosted stays, where the operator is on-site during rental, from unhosted whole-home rentals, applying tighter limits, occupancy caps, and review on unhosted activity to address neighborhood impact concerns.
Riverside limits short-term rental permits to the host's primary residence in most residential zones, blocking investor-owned vacation rentals and reserving STR activity for owner-occupants who actually live in the property.
Riverside applies a strikes-based enforcement system to short-term rentals where multiple verified violations within a rolling period trigger permit revocation, banning the operator from re-applying for a defined cooling-off term.
Riverside requires short-term rental platforms like Airbnb and Vrbo to display valid city permit numbers on listings and to remove non-compliant properties when notified, shifting some enforcement burden to booking sites.
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Riverside city rules.
Short-Term Rentals in Riverside County →