Primary-Residence-Only Rule
Modoc County imposes no primary-residence requirement on short-term rentals. With no vacation-rental ordinance, the county does not limit STRs to owner-occupied homes, and non-owner-occupied rentals are not prohibited.
10 rules for unincorporated Modoc County, California.
Verified from official government sources
Unincorporated Modoc County has no dedicated short-term rental permit or vacation-rental ordinance. STRs fall under general Title 18 zoning. The only county requirement is registering with the Tax Collector to collect the 4% transient occupancy tax once lodging opens for business.
There is no short-term rental noise ordinance in unincorporated Modoc County. Noise from a rental is addressed through general county nuisance and zoning provisions and state law, not an STR-specific quiet-hours rule.
Short-term rental guests in unincorporated Modoc County pay a 4% transient occupancy tax on the price of lodging. Operators register with the Tax Collector, collect the tax, and remit it quarterly. The county charges no separate STR permit or license fee.
Modoc County Tax Collector - Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) guidance
The current TOT rate is 4% on the price of lodging. The Tax Collector's office sends remittance forms quarterly, and they are due to our office on the last day of the month following the end of the quarter (January 31, April 30, July 31 and October 31).
Modoc County has no short-term rental parking ordinance. No STR-specific off-street parking minimums apply in the unincorporated area; general Title 18 zoning standards for the underlying residential or rural use govern instead.
No Modoc County ordinance sets a guest-count cap for short-term rentals. With no vacation-rental ordinance in place, occupancy is governed by California's state housing and building standards rather than a local STR rule.
Modoc County does not require short-term rental hosts to carry liability insurance. With no vacation-rental ordinance, there is no county-mandated coverage minimum; any insurance obligation comes from the host's own policy or booking platform, not county law.
Modoc County sets no annual night cap on short-term rentals. With no vacation-rental ordinance, there is no limit on the number of rented nights per year; only the 30-day-or-less duration that defines a taxable transient stay applies.
There is no short-term rental registration system in unincorporated Modoc County. The only registration the county requires is with the Tax Collector for the transient occupancy tax, which must be done when a lodging establishment opens for business in the unincorporated area.
Modoc County Tax Collector - Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) guidance
When a lodging establishment opens for business in the unincorporated (outside Alturas City limits) area of Modoc County, they are required to register with the Tax Collector and collect TOT.
No Modoc County rule requires a host or local contact to be present or on-call for short-term rentals. With no vacation-rental ordinance, the county imposes no on-site host, property-manager, or local-responsible-party mandate.
Modoc County imposes no primary-residence requirement on short-term rentals. With no vacation-rental ordinance, the county does not limit STRs to owner-occupied homes, and non-owner-occupied rentals are not prohibited.
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