Bayonne, NJ Short-Term Rentals: Occupancy Limits (2026)

Bayonne's short-term rental ordinance, Article XX (§ 33-20, added by Ord. No. O-24-12, amended by Ord. No. O-24-37), sets a specific occupancy cap for bed-and-breakfast short-term rentals operated out of an owner's home. City Code § 33-20.1.b defines "bed-and-breakfast" as overnight accommodations plus a morning meal provided to transients for compensation, where the owner resides on the premises and guest stays are limited to 14 consecutive days. Building on that definition, § 33-20.2.b.6 permits no more than three rooms within a single-family dwelling to operate as a bed-and-breakfast, on the condition that the remainder of the home is owner-occupied and identified by the owner as a principal residence.

Within that limit, the code adds a hard occupancy cap: no room may be occupied by more than two adults and their minor children at any time. A three-room bed-and-breakfast in Bayonne therefore cannot house more than six adults across the property, plus accompanying minor children, at once. The rule sits alongside the City's broader short-term rental permitting scheme: a bed-and-breakfast operator must still obtain an STR permit from the Department of Planning, Zoning, and Development under § 33-20.3 before renting or advertising rooms, pay the associated registration fee, and comply with the operational requirements in § 33-20.6, including the citywide bar on renting to anyone under 21 years of age.