Pismo Beach, CA Short-Term Rentals: Night Caps (2026)

Two separate limits apply. The first is a per-property day cap. Section 17.113.070 E in the 1983 Zoning Ordinance and § 17.09.070 E in the 1998 Zoning Code print the same sentence: a qualifying STR property is limited to a maximum of 182 rental days per year (less than half the year) without the property owner concurrently on site. The rule is tied to the primary residence definition, one hundred eighty-three days or more of owner residence per year. For homestays, with the owner concurrently on site, the code prints no limit.

The second limit is the license cap in § 5.22.130 A. At adoption there were twenty-eight properties authorized for short-term rental or homestay use, and there shall be no more than twenty-eight licenses in effect at any given time. No applications were accepted after December 5, 2023 for properties without an existing license in effect that day. If a license is revoked or not renewed, or the property transfers ownership, no additional license is issued to replace it. The city council states it intends to reduce the number of licenses to zero through attrition over time.

A short-term rental is a rental of less than thirty consecutive days. A rental agreement that allows a sublet or sublease to multiple parties for terms under thirty days, or an early cancellation that allows multiple rentals within a thirty-day period, is treated as a short-term rental and needs the license.

The city checks the count at renewal. Licenses expire on September 30, and as a condition of renewal the operator provides a listing of each rental night in the preceding twelve months, the rental charges for each night, and proof of payment of transient occupancy tax for those twelve months.

Pismo Beach uses two adopted zoning codes. The city's Zoning and Land Use page states that properties inside the Coastal Zone are regulated by the 1983 Zoning Code, and properties outside the Coastal Zone are regulated by the 1998 Zoning Code.