Vacation rental companies in Huntington Beach that fail to register by Nov. 1 may face fines of up to $1,000 per day. The ordinance will likely have a “substantial financial impact on the city,” so the city will give two warnings — one 90 days and another 60 days before enforcement starts.

The City Council of Huntington Beach, California has a controversial agenda item on their agenda for this week. The agenda item is titled: “Amendments to the Municipal Code to Add Chapter 14.08 and Create a New Article VIII.” The negative connotation of that title alone is enough to make any resident cringe. A groundbreaking ordinance created with the needs of short-term rental guests and property owners alike in mind. The city registered over 4,000 short-term vacation rentals in a matter of days, making it a leader in California hospitality by providing innovative solutions to the challenges affecting this rapidly growing industry.

The ordinance is to establish a six-month pilot program to regulate the short-term rental market and provide enforcement of codes, while having the option to extend the pilot program.

The city of Huntington Beach, California, has approved new regulations for short-term rentals that allow them to operate with restrictions.

The new measure allows “hosted” short-term rentals — where the host stays on-site during guests’ stays — throughout the city. All operators are required to get a short-term rental permit and are limited to one permit each. Operators must include the permit number on all marketing and advertising, including on platforms such as Airbnb and Vrbo.

Huntington Beach Vacation Rental Ordinance

In Sunset Beach, existing unhosted vacation rentals may continue to operate as long as owners obtain a permit within six months of the law going into effect. No new unhosted short-term rental permits will be issued after those six months.

Short-term rental platforms are required to include short-term rental permit numbers for each Huntington Beach listing and provide monthly reports on their listings to the city.

Under the new regulations, which go into effect late this month, Huntington Beach vacation rental operators must follow maximum occupancy, noise, safety code, and liability insurance rules and designate a contact that can respond to problems within one hour — 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Large gatherings are prohibited at short-term rentals.

The city may issue fines of $1,000 per day for violations of the short-term rental law.

Short-term rentals will become part of the Huntington Beach Tourism Business Improvement District (BID) and pay BID assessments, which are collected from guests. All vacation rental hosts in Huntington Beach must also register with the city for a Transient Occupancy Registration Certificate, collect transient occupancy tax (TOT) from guests, and file monthly tax returns.

If a short-term rental platform does not collect TOT on behalf of its hosts, hosts are responsible for TOT compliance. Neither Airbnb nor Vrbo collect taxes or BID assessments on behalf of hosts in Huntington Beach.

Nearby Long Beach recently legalized unhosted short-term rental stays, following an ordinance passed earlier this summer that legalized hosted vacation rentals for the first time. The new law limits the number of unhosted rental permits in the city to 800. Property owners located in Long Beach’s coastal zone will have to wait for the rules to be approved by the California Coastal Commission before they can offer short-term rentals.

MyLodgeTax can help automate and simplify tax compliance for California short-term rental hosts. For more on lodging taxes in California, see our state Vacation Rental Tax Guide. If you have tax questions related to vacation rental properties, drop us a line and we’ll get back to you with answers

Huntington Beach, CA

Join a local Host Club: Want to connect with Hosts in your area to get tips and advice? It’s easy—join your community’s official Host Group on Facebook!

When deciding whether to become an Airbnb host, it is important for you to understand the laws in your city. As a platform and marketplace we do not provide legal advice, but we want to give you some useful links that may help you better understand laws and regulations in Huntington Beach. This list is not exhaustive, but it should give you a good start in understanding your local laws. If you have questions, contact the City’s Planning and Zoning Counter at 714-536-5271 or community.development@surfcity-hb.org.

Short-term rental regulations

Huntington Beach allows short-term rentals to operate with a permit (Ordinance No. 4224). There are 2 distinct zones in the city where Short-Term Rentals are permitted. Zone 1 consists of all areas of the City excluding Sunset Beach. Zone 2 consists of Sunset Beach. In Zones 1 and 2, Short-Term Rentals are permitted in owner occupied residential dwelling units. In Zone 2 only, Short-Term Rentals are permitted for existing owner “un-occupied” residential dwelling units who obtain a permit within six (6) months of the effective date of the resolution establishing the permit fee(s). After six (6) months, no new permits for owner “un-occupied” residential dwelling units will be issued.

Registration is required to host short-term stays in Huntington Beach. Register now to continue hosting.

Permit/registration requirements

Hosts are required to display their short-term rental permit or registration number on any listing advertisement.

Add your number to continue hosting short-term stays in Huntington Beach.

Existing unhosted rentals in Sunset Beach (Zone 2) have six (6) months to obtain a permit and be grandfathered. Only one permit is allowed per person, and one permit per property (exception for condominiums and townhouses with 4+ units, which can have 3 permits). 

Hosts must have a signed indemnification and hold harmless agreement in a form approved by the City Attorney.

As part of the application process, all hosts must submit local contact person information, a certificate of occupancy, a signed statement affirming compliance with all applicable laws, and the following fee: 

• Application fee: $624
• Business License Fee: $75
• Business License Application Fee: $45

Tax

Hosts are responsible for collecting and remitting all Transient Occupancy Taxes (10%) and the Tourism Business Improvement District Assessment (4%) to the City of Huntington Beach. Get more information on short-term rentals in Huntington Beach.

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