Palm Desert, CA Short-Term Rentals: Primary-Residence-Only Rule (2026)

Palm Desert Municipal Code § 5.10.030 builds the primary residence rule through definitions. An on-site short-term rental is one at a host's primary residence where the host remains on the property and resides in a bedroom or casita throughout the guest's stay, except during daytime or work hours. A host is a property owner who occupies the property during the entire period of the short term rental. Primary residence means a person's permanent residence or usual place of return for housing, verified by at least two of the following: driver's license, voter registration, tax records listing the dwelling as the person's home, or a utility bill.

The code does not stop at the paperwork. Under § 5.10.050.A.1, the on-site permit is conditioned on the host demonstrating regular occupancy, by neighbor verification or other means the city manager finds sufficient, showing regular and continuous owner-occupancy before and during each rental period.

The code does not make every rental owner-occupied. An off-site short-term rental is one where there is no host and the operator resides off-site during the guest's stay. Section 5.10.070.B lists the zones where an off-site permit is available: RE, R-3, HPR and PR where a Functioning HOA exists and the owner is permitted under state law or the CC&Rs, DEO, DE and D. The off-site list does not include R-1M, R-1 or R-2, which appear only on the on-site list in § 5.10.070.A. Apartments, accessory dwelling units and junior accessory dwelling units are prohibited unit types for both permit types, and an on-site unit cannot have one bedroom or less.

Section 5.10.080 closes the HPR zone to new off-site permits and terminates all existing HPR off-site permits by December 31, 2026. An owner who cannot meet the primary residence test and is outside the off-site zones is not eligible, because § 5.10.060.B bars a permit for any property that does not qualify under § 5.10.070.