Short-Term Rentals in El Dorado County, CA (2026)

9 rules for unincorporated El Dorado County, California.

Verified from official government sources

Note: These county rules apply to unincorporated areas of El Dorado County. If you live within an incorporated city, that city's own rules apply: see the city list below.

Short-Term Rental Permits

No one may rent a home in unincorporated El Dorado County for 30 days or less without a valid hosted or vacation home rental permit under Section 5.56.050. Only one permit is issued per unit, the permit is non-transferable and voids on sale, and it must be paired with a business license and transient occupancy tax registration.

El Dorado County STR Permit Requirement

Significant Restrictions

El Dorado County Code § 5.56.050 (Hosted or vacation home rental permit requirements)

No owner of a hosted or vacation home rental shall rent that unit for 30 consecutive calendar days or less without a valid hosted or vacation home rental permit for that unit issued pursuant to this chapter. A separate permit shall be required for each hosted or vacation home rental but there may not be more than one hosted or vacation home rental per parcel. ... A hosted or vacation home renta...

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Noise Rules

El Dorado County Code Section 5.56.120 makes it unlawful for anyone at a hosted or vacation home rental to create loud, raucous, or offensive noise, and separately bans hosting any concert, gathering, wedding, or assembly of persons on the property. Code Enforcement and the Sheriff's Office enforce the rule, and violations trigger the escalating fines set out in Section 5.56.140.

El Dorado County Bans Parties at Vacation Rentals

Significant Restrictions

El Dorado County Code § 5.56.120

A.It shall be unlawful for any person on residential property or a public way to make or continue, or cause to be made or continued, any offensive, excessive, unnecessary, or unusually loud, or raucous noise, or any noise which either annoys, disturbs, injures, or endangers the comfort, repose, health, peace, or safety of others on residential property or public ways within the County.B.It shal...

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Taxes & Fees

Short-term rental guests in El Dorado County pay a 10 percent transient occupancy tax countywide, rising to 14 percent in the unincorporated Tahoe Area under Section 3.28.030, where the extra 4 percent is dedicated solely to snow removal and road maintenance. Operators also pay separate rental application, renewal, and fire and life safety inspection fees.

El Dorado County STR Occupancy Tax and Fees

Some Restrictions

El Dorado County Code §§ 3.28.030 (Imposed), 5.56.085 (Fire and life safety inspection fee)

For the privilege of occupancy in any facility, except a camping site or a space at a privately-owned campground or recreational vehicle park, each transient is subject to and shall pay a tax in the amount of ten percent of the rent charged by the operator. ... in addition to the tax specified in Subdivision A above, each transient is subject to and shall pay an additional tax in the amount of ...

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Short-Term Rental Parking Rules

Every hosted or vacation home rental in El Dorado County must provide at least two on-site parking spaces under Section 5.56.110. In the Lake Tahoe Basin those spaces must sit on an impervious surface, and blocking a neighbor's driveway is an explicit chapter violation.

El Dorado County STR On-Site Parking Rules

Some Restrictions

El Dorado County Code § 5.56.110 (Parking)

Sec. 5.56.110. - Parking. All permissible uses shall comply with the County parking, driveway, loading standards, and seasonal snow removal regulations. 1.On-site parking for all vehicles, boats and trailers shall be provided for each HHR and VHR. Each rental must provide a minimum of two on-site parking spaces. Within the Tahoe Basin, the parking spaces shall be located on an impervious surfac...

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Occupancy Limits

El Dorado County short-term rentals are capped at two overnight occupants per permitted bedroom under Section 5.56.090(A)(1), counting every guest age six and up. A hosted home rental tops out at four people total, the number can never be raised after the permit issues, and it must be spelled out in every listing and rental contract.

El Dorado County STR Maximum Occupancy Rule

Some Restrictions

El Dorado County Code §§ 5.56.040 (Definitions), 5.56.090(A)(1) (Standards of operation)

Occupancy means the number of individuals six years of age and older permitted to be in the residence during the rental period. Occupancy is based on two persons per bedroom. Hosted home rentals have a maximum occupancy of four persons, six years of age and older. ... 1.Maximum occupancy. The number of overnight occupants shall not exceed two persons per permitted bedroom. Children six years of...

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Night Caps

El Dorado County caps vacation home rental permits at 900 within the unincorporated Lake Tahoe Basin under Section 5.56.055. Hosted home rentals don't count against the cap, once the ceiling is hit new applicants join a waiting list, and renewal requires proof the unit was actually rented at least ten nights in the prior year.

El Dorado County VHR Cap in Tahoe Basin

Significant Restrictions

El Dorado County Code § 5.56.055 (Cap on the number of vacation home rental permits in the Tahoe Basin)

Within the Lake Tahoe Basin portion of the unincorporated area of El Dorado County, no more than 900 vacation home rental permits shall be issued. Hosted home rentals are not subject to the cap, nor do they count against it. ... Property owners that have a valid vacation home rental permit from the County must demonstrate at the time of renewal that the property was rented in the prior 12-month...

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Host Presence Rule

El Dorado County Code Section 5.56.130(C) requires every hosted home rental to have a designated host who lives in the house as a primary residence and stays available 24 hours a day whenever the property is rented. The host must personally resolve any noise, trash, or parking complaint within 30 minutes of notice, and losing the host voids the permit outright.

Hosted Rentals Need an Onsite Host in El Dorado County

Significant Restrictions

El Dorado County Code § 5.56.130(C)

C.Each owner of a hosted home rental shall designate a host. The host shall be a designated person who lives and stays in the house as their primary residence and is available 24 hours a day during all times that the property is rented. An owner of a hosted home rental who lives at the property may designate himself or herself as the host. The host shall be required to abate a nuisance relating...

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Primary-Residence-Only Rule

A hosted home rental in El Dorado County is legal only if the operator's home is genuinely their primary residence: Chapter 5.56 defines "Host" as the owner or lessee for whom the property constitutes their primary residence, a status they must prove with matching documentation, unlike whole-home vacation rentals which carry no residency requirement.

El Dorado County Hosted Rental Residency Rule

Some Restrictions

El Dorado County Code § 5.56.040 (Definitions)

Host means a natural person aged 18 or older who is the owner or lessee of the subject property and for whom the subject property constitutes his or her primary residence. ... Hosted home rental (HHR) means a rental property at which a host resides and sleeps in one of the bedrooms during the period of the rental. This may be either the rental of up to two bedrooms within a primary residence or...

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Repeat Violator Strikes

El Dorado County Code Section 5.56.140 escalates penalties for short-term rental violations: fines climb from up to $1,500 for a first offense to $3,000 for a second and $5,000 for a third or later violation within 12 months. A property with three violations in 18 months gets a six-month suspension, and a fourth revokes the permit outright.

Three Strikes Suspends an El Dorado County Rental

Significant Restrictions

El Dorado County Code § 5.56.140(D)-(F)

D.The fine for violations specified in Subsections A, B and C of this section shall be as follows:1.For the first violation (or second violation for renting without a permit) within any 12-month period, the fine shall not exceed $1,500.00;2.For a second violation (or third violation for renting without a permit) within any 12-month period, the fine shall not exceed $3,000.00;3.For a third viola...

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All El Dorado County ordinances

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