Modoc County, CA Short-Term Rentals: Permit Requirements (2026)

Modoc County is among California's most remote, sparsely populated rural counties, and its government has not adopted a stand-alone short-term rental or vacation-rental ordinance for the unincorporated area (everything outside the City of Alturas, the county's only incorporated city). There is no county STR registration program, annual license, life-safety inspection, or cap specific to vacation rentals. Instead, short-term rentals are treated under the general Title 18 Zoning Ordinance and, for tax purposes, under the county's transient occupancy tax. The county's published guidance is limited to the Tax Collector's instruction that a lodging operator opening for business in the unincorporated area must register with the Tax Collector and collect the 4% TOT. Where a use rises above what a residential or rural zone permits by right, the county's discretionary tool is a Use Permit issued by the Planning Commission under Chapter 18.128 of the Zoning Ordinance, which is the general mechanism for uses requiring case-by-case review. Because no STR-specific ordinance exists, prospective hosts should confirm zoning compatibility and use-permit thresholds directly with the Modoc County Planning Department before operating.