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

Jurisdictions facing heavy tourism often cap the number of nights a property can be rented short-term each year, particularly for non-owner-occupied homes. Unincorporated Modoc County imposes no such annual or monthly night cap because it has not adopted a short-term rental ordinance. A host may rent for as many nights per year as the underlying zoning permits, with no county-imposed ceiling on rental frequency. The only duration concept in the county's framework is the transient occupancy tax threshold: under California Revenue and Taxation Code Section 7280, the tax applies to occupancy of 30 days or less, so a stay becomes non-transient (and outside the TOT) once it exceeds 30 days, but that is a tax definition, not a usage cap. Modoc County's remote, high-desert location and minimal tourism mean it has not experienced the visitor pressure that drives night-cap ordinances in coastal and mountain-resort counties. Hosts should still verify that the property's Title 18 zone permits the rental use and, where applicable, whether a Use Permit under Chapter 18.128 is needed.