Escondido, CA Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)

Section 33-1104 of the Zoning Code states that small and large family day care homes, as defined in Section 33-8, must conform to all development standards specified for the zone where the home is located, meaning a family day care home does not need a conditional use permit, variance, or other discretionary zoning approval beyond what any single-family residence in that zone already must meet. Section 33-8 defines 'family day care' as regularly provided care, protection, and supervision of 14 or fewer children in the provider's home for periods of less than 24 hours a day while parents or guardians are away.

Within that definition, a 'small family day care home' serves eight or fewer children, including any children who live at the home, while a 'large family day care home' serves nine to 14 children, including resident children, with no overnight stay permitted in either category. Escondido's permitted-use tables list small and large family day care homes as a permitted use across the city's residential zoning districts, in contrast to day nurseries and larger child care centers, which the same tables mark as conditional uses requiring a conditional use permit.

This distinction tracks the home-based, small-scale nature of family day care under Section 33-1104: because the use must simply meet the zone's ordinary development standards, such as setbacks, lot coverage, and parking already applicable to the residence, the operator does not go through the discretionary review that a stand-alone child care center or day nursery faces.