Tustin, CA Short-Term Rentals: Host Platform Liability (2026)

Tustin City Code Section 9281(F) extends the City's short-term rental ban past the property owner to the online platforms that list and book the stays. Section 9281(F)(1) is a flat prohibition: hosting platforms shall not complete any booking transaction for short-term rentals in the City, meaning a platform cannot process a reservation for a Tustin address regardless of how the listing is worded. Section 9281(F)(2) adds a reporting duty: no later than thirty days after any person seeks to use a hosting platform to complete a short-term rental in the City, the platform must give the Community Development Director or a designee, in writing, the names and contact information of the person responsible for the listing, the listing's address, the length of stay, and the price quoted.

Section 9281(F)(3) cuts off the platform's revenue directly: hosting platforms cannot collect or receive any compensation, monetary or non-monetary, directly or through an agent or intermediary, for facilitating a short-term rental in the City, and the Section specifically lists ancillary services such as insurance, concierge services, catering, restaurant bookings, tours, guide services, entertainment, cleaning, and property management or maintenance as covered, not just the core booking fee. Section 9281(F)(4) offers platforms a narrow presumption of compliance if they follow the Section, but that presumption doesn't excuse a platform from responding to a City administrative subpoena seeking information about short-term rental advertising or activity, and Section 9281(F)(5) subordinates the whole subsection to any conflicting state or federal law that would preempt it.