Lassen County, CA Short-Term Rentals: Night Caps (2026)

Night caps, an annual ceiling on how many nights a home can be used as a short-term rental, are a tool used by jurisdictions that want to limit STR intensity. Research found no such cap in unincorporated Lassen County, because the county has not adopted a short-term rental ordinance. There is no maximum number of rented nights per year, no distinction between hosted and unhosted night limits, and no permit tier tied to nights rented. The only night-related threshold that matters is the tax definition: under California practice, Transient Occupancy Tax applies to stays of a short duration (commonly 30 days or less), which is what makes a guest a taxable transient rather than a long-term tenant. That threshold defines which stays are taxable, not how many nights per year a property may operate. Because Lassen is a remote recreation-oriented county, demand is seasonal rather than year-round, and the county has chosen to rely on general zoning and the TOT rather than a night cap. Operators should confirm the parcel's zoning and the exact transient-stay threshold in the county's TOT chapter rather than looking for an annual night limit, which does not exist. No night-cap section number is cited because the county code contains none.