10 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 2 cities in Tulare County, California.
Verified from official government sources
Unincorporated Tulare County has NO short-term rental land-use permit. The Board of Supervisors rejected a proposed STR ordinance 3-2 on July 9, 2024. The only mandatory step is registering with the Tax Collector for a Transient Occupancy Registration Certificate, which the Code states does not constitute a permit.
Tulare County Code Article 1-05 (Finance) - Transient Occupancy Tax registration provision
Every person engaging or about to engage in business as an operator of a hotel or short-term residential rental in the unincorporated area of Tulare County shall register with the Tax Collector on a form which may be obtained at the Office of the Tax Collector or on the Tulare County Tax Collector's website.
Unincorporated Tulare County has no STR-specific noise ordinance. A proposed STR noise rule was rejected 3-2 on July 9, 2024. STR noise is handled through the County's Public Nuisance Ordinance (Part IV, Chapter 1), California Civil Code section 3479, and Sheriff enforcement of disturbing-the-peace law.
Unincorporated Tulare County charges a 10% Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) on rent for stays of 30 consecutive days or less, including short-term residential rentals. Operators collect it from guests and file quarterly returns. There is no separate STR permit fee because no STR permit exists.
There is no STR-specific parking rule in unincorporated Tulare County. The proposed ordinance, which would have required guest vehicles to park on the rental property and not on the street, was rejected 3-2 on July 9, 2024. Parking is governed only by general traffic and nuisance rules.
Unincorporated Tulare County sets no STR-specific occupancy cap. The proposed ordinance that would have limited occupants by number of bedrooms was rejected 3-2 on July 9, 2024. Occupancy is governed only by general building/zoning standards and nuisance rules, not by a dedicated STR maximum.
Tulare County Code Article 1-05 (Finance) - definition of 'transient'
'Transient' means any person who exercises occupancy or is entitled to occupancy by reason of concession, permit, right of access, license or other agreement for a period of thirty (30) consecutive calendar days or less.
Unincorporated Tulare County does not require liability insurance for short-term rentals. The proposed STR ordinance, which would have introduced operating conditions, was rejected 3-2 on July 9, 2024. No proof-of-insurance condition exists in the County code for STRs.
Unincorporated Tulare County imposes no annual cap on short-term rental nights. With the STR ordinance rejected 3-2 on July 9, 2024, there is no limit on how many nights or days per year a property may be rented. The only day-count threshold in the code is a 15-day TOT registration trigger.
Every operator of a short-term residential rental in unincorporated Tulare County must register with the Treasurer-Tax Collector before or within 30 days of starting business. The Tax Collector issues a free Transient Occupancy Registration Certificate within 10 days, which must be prominently displayed at the property.
Unincorporated Tulare County does not require an on-site or on-call host for short-term rentals. The proposed ordinance, which would have required contact-information signage at each property, was rejected 3-2 on July 9, 2024. No host-presence or local-contact mandate is in force.
Unincorporated Tulare County imposes no primary-residence requirement on short-term rentals. With no STR ordinance adopted (proposal rejected 3-2 on July 9, 2024), non-owner-occupied and investor-owned whole-home rentals are not prohibited by any STR-specific rule; only TOT and general zoning apply.
2 cities in Tulare County have their own short-term rentals rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
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