Short-term rental permit rules in Santa Rosa, CA — also called Airbnb permits, vacation rental licenses, or STR registration — list the application steps, fees, and operating requirements for hosting.
Santa Rosa requires a Short-Term Rental (STR) Permit for every property rented for less than 30 consecutive days. The City is no longer accepting new Non-Hosted applications; only Hosted STRs (where the owner's principal residence is on-site) are available to new applicants.
Under Santa Rosa Zoning Code Chapter 20-48, a permit is required before renting, advertising, or listing a dwelling unit for periods of less than 30 days. Permits are issued only to the property owner, are non-transferable (with limited exceptions for spouses/domestic partners under ORD-2023-011), and must be renewed annually. A 30-day grace period applies after expiration. Hosted STRs require the owner to reside on-site (or in another unit on the same parcel) as their principal residence and submit a principal-residence affidavit plus two proof documents (driver's license, voter registration, vehicle registration, utility bill, etc.). Non-hosted permits are capped at 182 citywide and are being reduced through attrition; the City stopped accepting new non-hosted applications. Beginning January 2025, STR operators must also obtain a City Business Tax Certificate, and operators of four or more STRs must hold a Business Tax Certificate.
Operating an STR without a permit, advertising without including the permit number, or providing false residency information triggers administrative citations and may bar issuance or renewal of the permit. The City's tiered penalty schedule (Zoning Code Section 20-48.080, Table 48.1) imposes a citation on the first verified violation and a monetary fine on the second; a third verified violation within a rolling 12-month period results in permit revocation and permanent ineligibility for that property.
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