Alpine County, CA Short-Term Rentals: Host Presence Rule (2026)

Alpine County does not impose a host-presence or on-site-operator requirement; unhosted whole-home rentals are allowed. What the County requires instead is a responsive designated contact. Section 18.73.070(N) requires the property owner to designate an emergency contact, who may be a professional property manager, realtor, property owner, or other designated person, available twenty-four hours per day, seven days per week during all times the property is rented, with access and authority to assume management of the unit and take remedial measures. Critically, that contact must abate a nuisance relating to noise, trash, or parking within one hour after being notified of a potential violation - one of the tightest response standards among California mountain counties. Section 18.73.120(E) requires the contact's name, phone, mailing address, and email on the application whenever a management company or person assumes responsibility for the rental, and Section 18.73.060 requires the 24/7 emergency contact to be included in the neighbor notice mailed to owners within 300 feet. The interior guest notice under Section 18.73.070(J)(1) must list the name and a 24-hour phone number for the managing agency, agent, property manager, local contact, or owner, and Section 18.73.070(G)(3) requires written 24/7 emergency contact information (for the owner or agent plus law enforcement, fire, and ambulance) be posted conspicuously inside the unit.