Santa Clara County has no countywide primary-residence rule for short-term rentals. San Jose, Mountain View, and Palo Alto require hosts to use the property as their primary home, while Saratoga and Los Gatos restrict STRs more broadly through zoning.
Unincorporated Santa Clara County imposes no primary-residence requirement on short-term rentals; SCC zoning treats vacation rentals like other transient lodging where allowed. Within incorporated cities the picture varies. San Jose Municipal Code §20.80.700 requires hosts to occupy the dwelling as their primary residence at least 60 days annually for unhosted rentals; Mountain View's STR rules under Ord. 16.40 mirror this with a 270-night non-primary cap. Palo Alto restricts STRs to primary residences with a 90-night unhosted cap. Saratoga and Los Gatos largely prohibit STRs in residential zones. Hosts must verify city rules, register with the county Tax Collector for transient occupancy tax, and post a permit number on listings.
Operating a non-primary STR where prohibited can result in fines of $1,000 to $2,500 per night under city ordinances, platform delisting, transient occupancy tax recovery, and revocation of any city permit.
Palo Alto, CA
Palo Alto does not currently impose a citywide annual night cap on short-term rentals, but non-hosted rentals must remain zoning compliant year-round.
Palo Alto, CA
Palo Alto requires short-term rental operators to register with the city, collect the 14% Transient Occupancy Tax, and operate only in legally permitted dwel...
See how Palo Alto's primary-residence-only rule rules stack up against other locations.
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