Cathedral City, CA Short-Term Rentals: Primary-Residence-Only Rule (2026)
Key Facts
- Share of bedrooms rentable
- Not exceeding fifty percent of total bedrooms
- Owner presence
- An owner occupies the dwelling or an ADU on site for the contract
- Maximum stay
- Thirty consecutive calendar days or less
- Disqualified spaces
- Includes ADUs built or permitted after January 1, 2020
- Minimum stay
- Four-day, three-night minimum does not apply to home shares
- Governing chapter
- Cathedral City Municipal Code Chapter 5.96
Summary
In Cathedral City, California, the short-term rental that remains available to most owners is home sharing: renting part of the owner's primary residence, no more than fifty percent of the bedrooms, for thirty consecutive calendar days or less while an owner stays on the property. Home sharing is not permitted in any disqualified space.
"Home sharing"or "home share" means a form of short-term vacation rental of a privately owned qualifying residential unit located on property that is the primary residence of the owner(s), a portion of which, not exceeding fifty percent of the total bedrooms, is rented occasionally for occupancy, dwelling, lodging, or sleeping purposes for a period of thirty consecutive calendar days or less, counting portions of calendar days as full use days to another person or persons, incidentally to the normal occupancy by the owner(s), where at least one of the owners occupies the qualifying residential dwelling, or an accessory dwelling unit located on the same property, for the duration of the rental contract. Home sharing or home share is not permitted in any disqualified space.
Full Breakdown
Section 5.96.020 of the Cathedral City Municipal Code defines home sharing as a form of short-term vacation rental of a qualifying residential unit located on property that is the primary residence of the owner or owners. Only a portion of the home qualifies, not exceeding fifty percent of the total bedrooms, and the rental must be occasional and incidental to the normal occupancy by the owners. At least one of the owners must occupy the qualifying residential dwelling, or an accessory dwelling unit on the same property, for the duration of the rental contract. Stays are thirty consecutive calendar days or less, with portions of calendar days counted as full use days.
The definition of "disqualified space" removes whole classes of property from home sharing in Cathedral City: publicly owned dwellings, units under recorded affordability covenants, privately owned multi-family rental housing, fractionally owned property, any accessory dwelling unit built or permitted after January 1, 2020, any portion of a unit rented separately from the main dwelling, recreational vehicles, tents, campsites, commercial or industrial structures and sheds. A hotel, motel or timeshare subject to Chapter 9.92 is not home sharing.
The city council closed the broader STVR route through § 5.96.035. New permits and renewals are limited to home sharing or to rentals within a common interest development, all other existing permits terminated on January 1, 2023, and a lessee of a long term rental cannot obtain a permit at all. The application must identify whether the permit is for a short-term vacation rental or a home share and, for a home share, state the number of bedrooms on the property proposed to be rented (§ 5.96.040(E)).
Unless the chapter says otherwise, every STVR rule applies to home shares, including the inspection, insurance, occupancy and noise standards. The chapter carves out a few home share exceptions: the four-day, three-night minimum contract duration in § 5.96.050(O) does not apply, and home shares are exempt from the two regular and two recycling trash can requirement in § 5.96.050(G). The definition of "occupant" also counts the primary residents who remain on the property during a home share.
Violations & Fines
Renting a property that is not the owner's occupied primary residence, or renting a disqualified space, falls outside the home share definition and is operating a short-term vacation rental without a valid permit. That draws administrative citations under Chapter 13.58, a separate violation for each day, possible misdemeanor charges, and permit suspension after a third citation within twelve months (§ 5.96.070).
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to live in the home to rent it in Cathedral City?
How many bedrooms can a Cathedral City home share rent out?
Which spaces are disqualified from home sharing in Cathedral City?
Does the four-night minimum apply to a Cathedral City home share?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Cathedral City
California rules heatmap·Compare Cathedral City to another location·View the California short-term rentals overview
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