Alpine County, CA Short-Term Rentals: Primary-Residence-Only Rule (2026)

Alpine County imposes no primary-residence or owner-occupancy requirement on short-term rentals. Section 18.73.020 provides that residential short-term rentals may be located in any zone that allows residential use, provided the rental complies with the chapter, and it defines a short-term rental to include owner-occupied short-term rentals without making owner occupancy a condition of eligibility. The definition excludes bed and breakfasts, inns, hotels, and motels, and Section 18.73.020 prohibits short-term rentals in accessory dwelling units or junior ADUs unless they were built before 2017. Section 18.73.110 confirms that only owners of the residential unit may apply, but ownership is not the same as residency, so non-resident investment owners may hold licenses. The only place owner occupancy appears is in the exemptions of Section 18.73.030, where one bedroom in an owner-occupied residence hosting up to three guests is exempt from the chapter's requirements (other than TOT) - an option for resident hosts, not a mandate. Whole-home vacation rentals, which dominate the Kirkwood ski and Bear Valley markets, are therefore permitted. What does constrain whole-home rentals is not residency but the supply controls in Section 18.73.130: a cap of thirty-five licensed rentals in the East Slope short-term rental overlay district and a 100-foot separation buffer between licensed rentals in the residential and agricultural zones.