Monterey County, CA Short-Term Rentals: Short-Term Rental Parking Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Commercial STR parking standard
- Per dwelling type, MCC § 21.58.040
- Single-family detached baseline
- 2 off-street spaces per unit
- ADU/JADU parking
- Not required
- Application requirement, all rental types
- On-site parking plan, § 7.120.090(B)(3)(d)
- Coastal-zone counterpart
- MCC § 20.64.290, references § 20.58.040
- Enforcing authority
- County HCD, appropriate authority
Summary
Monterey County requires vacation rentals in the unincorporated area to document on-site parking before they can be licensed. Commercial vacation rentals must meet the standard zoning parking count for the dwelling type under Monterey County Code Section 21.58.040, and every operator must submit an on-site parking plan with the Chapter 7.120 license application.
Commercial vacation rentals shall provide parking as required for the dwelling type by Monterey County Code Section 21.58.040, or the applicable parking regulations at the time the dwelling was built.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 56).
Full Breakdown
Monterey County treats short-term rental parking as both a zoning standard and a permitting checkpoint. 040, or the applicable parking regulations at the time the dwelling was built. 040's table sets the baseline: a single-family detached dwelling must provide two off-street parking spaces per unit, while accessory dwelling units and junior ADUs are exempt from the count. 120. 090(B)(2) requires site plans showing on-site parking areas and all structures. The County's Housing and Community Development Department, acting as the appropriate authority, reviews both the parking plan and the underlying zoning entitlement before issuing the annual license.
040. A vacation rental that cannot demonstrate compliant on-site parking risks having its license application deemed incomplete, since the appropriate authority may grant a license only after confirming the checklist enumerating this Chapter's requirements has been met.
Violations & Fines
An application missing the required parking plan is incomplete under Section 7.120.090 and cannot be granted under Section 7.120.100's ministerial-issuance checklist. Operating an unlicensed or non-compliant vacation rental exposes the operator to enforcement under Section 7.120.160: a civil penalty of up to 175 percent of the maximum advertised daily rate, or $1,000 per day for units with no advertised rate, for a first violation, rising to 275 percent (or $2,500 per day) for a second violation within a year and 375 percent (or $5,000 per day) for a third.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Monterey County vacation rentals need dedicated parking?
Does the parking rule apply in Big Sur and the coastal zone?
What has to be included in the parking plan?
What happens if a vacation rental lacks compliant parking?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Monterey County
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