Palm Springs, CA Short-Term Rentals: Repeat Violator Strikes (2026)

Section 5.25.090 builds an escalating enforcement ladder for vacation rental violations. Every violation is punishable as a misdemeanor for each day it continues, and each administrative citation issued under Chapter 1.06 costs $500 for a first offense and $1,000 for every one after that, levied against the property owner under Section 5.25.090(a). Once an owner accumulates three violations within any rolling 12-month period, Section 5.25.090(b) requires the city manager to suspend the vacation rental registration certificate for a full two years, with no discretion to impose a shorter penalty.

A separate trigger applies to tax delinquency: if an owner fails to remit transient occupancy tax under Chapter 3.24 after written notice to do so, that alone results in a 12-month suspension of the certificate for that property. Operating altogether without a certificate carries steeper, standalone fines under Section 5.25.090(c): a $5,000 administrative fine plus permanent ineligibility to ever operate a vacation rental in the city, rising to $10,000 for continued unpermitted operation. Advertising without including the certificate number, operating without a signed contract, or failing to submit a contract summary before each stay draws a $2,500 fine and a six-month certificate suspension for a first offense under Section 5.25.090(d), doubling to $5,000 and outright revocation for a second offense.

Every suspension or revocation can be appealed through the Chapter 2.50 hearing process under Section 5.25.090(f), and the city can pursue these administrative remedies alongside criminal or civil enforcement at the same time under Section 5.25.090(i).