Butte County, CA Short-Term Rentals: Primary-Residence-Only Rule (2026)
Key Facts
- Primary Residence Required
- Owner's permanent home, documented by two IDs
- 5-Acre Exception
- 5+ acre parcel in 5-acre-minimum zone exempt
- Adjoining-Owner Exception
- Owner living next door on adjoining parcel exempt
- Governing Section
- Butte County Code § 24-172.1 C.1
- Enforcing Agency
- Department of Development Services
- Cabin Communities Exempt
- Butte Meadows, Jonesville, Lake Madrone, Philbrook Reservoir
Summary
Butte County's short-term rental ordinance requires the rental to be the owner's primary residence, defined as the permanent home documented by two forms of identification, unless the parcel is five acres or larger in a 5-acre-minimum zone or the owner lives next door on an adjoining lot. Development Services checks this at permit application and renewal.
1.Short-term rentals are required to be a primary residence as defined under this section, except when either of the following applies:a.The applicable zone has a 5-acre or greater minimum parcel size, and the applicable parcel is five (5) acres or greater in size.b.The owner of a short-term rental has a permanent residence and resides on an adjacent parcel sharing a common property line with the short-term rental parcel.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 61).
Full Breakdown
1 C of the Butte County Code of Ordinances, adopted as Ordinance No. 4159 in 2019 and amended by Ordinance Nos. 4175 and 4197, ties short-term rental eligibility to owner-occupancy. 2. Two carve-outs exist: a parcel in a zone with a five-acre or larger minimum lot size that is itself five acres or more, and a case where the owner holds a permanent residence on an adjoining parcel sharing a common property line with the rental. 5. 4, with agricultural-use rentals capped at one per parcel meeting the ten-acre prime or forty-acre nonprime minimums.
Development Services verifies primary-residence status when it reviews the administrative permit application required under Subsection D and again during the annual renewal under Subsection F, which also checks strike history and tax payment.
Violations & Fines
Operating a short-term rental that fails the primary-residence test without qualifying for the acreage or adjoining-owner exception is a violation of Section 24-172.1 and can be cited under the code's general enforcement provisions in Chapter 41, in addition to Section 24-5F. A confirmed violation counts as a strike toward the two-strikes renewal denial under Subsection F.1 and, after three strikes within 24 months, triggers a cease-and-desist notice and permit revocation under Subsection J.1.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my short-term rental in Butte County have to be my primary residence?
What if my parcel is five acres or bigger?
Are any Butte County communities exempt from the primary-residence rule?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Butte County
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