Airbnb Rental Laws and Regulations San Diego County, CA (North of San Diego)

STR Defined

Generally, the North County cities of San Diego define a short term rental as the occupancy of a dwelling unit or part thereof for less than one month (30 days). 

• Primary website for Oceanside, CA STR Regulations
• Primary website for Carlsbad, CA STR Regulations
• Primary website for Encinitas, CA STR Regulations

Licensing Requirements & Fees

Licensing requirements and associated fees vary by city within North County (San Diego), California. 

Oceanside

• The STR permit fee is $250 and must be renewed annually.  There is also an initial property inspection fee of $119. Fees are non-refundable.
• All short-term (Airbnb) rental properties are required to hold a valid Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) certificate.
  • Transient Occupancy Tax Application
• Hosted properties must submit a signed Affidavit.
• Owner is the person(s) or entity(ies) that hold(s) legal and/or equitable title to the subject short-term rental.

Carlsbad

• There is no cost to obtain or renew a permit, however a business license is required for each short-term (Airbnb) vacation rental.
  • Apply for a permit in person at the City of Carlsbad Finance Department at 1635 Faraday Ave. in Carlsbad or on the city website, www.carlsbadca.gov/visitors/vacationrental.
• The City of Carlsbad requires all businesses within the limits of the city to have a valid license. Short-term (Airbnb) vacation rental operators are required to obtain a business license, and a short-term vacation rental permit, prior to advertising their property. These must be renewed annually.
  • All documents required to obtain a Short-Term (Airbnb) Vacation Rental License / Permit are listed below:

• Business License (download application)
• Permit (permit)
• Impact Response Plan (Impact Response Plan)
• Declaration Notification (Declaration Notice)
• The Business License Application may be completed online (Apply on-line) Once submitted, an email confirmation with a Business License reference number, will be sent.  The other required documents mentioned above may be submitted via email, mail or delivered in person to 1635 Faraday Ave, Carlsbad, CA 92008.

Encinitas

• Applicants shall submit an application for a short-term (Airbnb) rental permit to the City of Encinitas each year for each unit.
  • Approved permits are valid for one year and are not transferable to another location or to another person. A change of ownership requires a new application.
    • Fees: New application: $150
    • Renewal fee: $150
  • ALL FEES ARE NON-REFUNDABLE
• The application for a permit shall be accompanied by a nonrefundable application fee as established by the City Manager; however, the fee shall be no greater than necessary to defer the cost incurred by the City in administering the provisions of this chapter. Although the applicant may be the property owner or the property owner’s agent, the property owner shall be the party responsible for compliance with all provisions of this chapter and all of the laws regulating short-term rentals.
  • Upon change of property ownership or material fact, a new application for a Airbnb rental permit shall be required to continue operation of the short-term rental and within 14 days of said change the property owner or his/her agent shall submit the required application and fee.
  • “Owner” means the owner of the Airbnb rental who has an interest in the property as provided for in the property deed. All persons listed in the deed that have an ownership interest are required to sign the short-term rental permit application.
    • If the property is held in trust or is part of a limited liability company (LLC), the trustee or the general member of the LLC must sign the short-term rental permit application.
    • If the property is held in a corporation’s name, the corporation’s duly-authorized agent shall sign the short-term rental permit application. Each owner shall be held jointly and severally liable for any violations of this chapter.

LLC Ownership Allowed

• LLC ownership of a short term rental is allowed.

Owning multiple short term rental properties (including within the same property)

• Yes, an owner of more than one property can apply for multiple Airbnb residential occupancy licenses and each property must have its own permit license.

Taxes

• Hosting platforms may have existing agreements with the county to collect and pay taxes/fees directly to the county.
  • Ex: Airbnb occupancy tax collection and remittance in California. 

Oceanside

• Guests who book Airbnb listings that are located in the City of Oceanside, CA will pay the following taxes as part of their reservation:

• Transient Occupancy Tax: 10% of the listing price including any cleaning fees, for reservations 30 nights and shorter. For detailed information, please visit the Oceanside Transient Occupancy Tax website.
• Tourism Marketing District Assessment: 1.5-2.5% of the listing price including any cleaning fees, for reservations 30 nights and shorter. Tax rate is dependent on listing type. For detailed information, please visit the Oceanside Transient Occupancy Tax website.

Carlsbad

• Guests who book Airbnb listings that are located in the City of Carlsbad, CA will pay the following taxes as part of their reservation:

• Transient Occupancy Tax: 10% of the gross receipts including any cleaning fees, for reservations 30 nights and shorter. For detailed information, please visit the City of Carlsbad Finance website and the Carlsbad STVR Q & A page.
• Carlsbad Tourism Business Improvement District Assessment: 2% of the listing price including any cleaning fees, for reservations 30 nights and shorter. For detailed information, please visit the City of Carlsbad Finance website and the Carlsbad STVR Q & A page.

Occupancy Limits

Oceanside

• The maximum number of occupants that can stay overnight in STR properties is two adults per bedroom plus two additional people per unit (including children).
  • An additional 10 daytime guests are allowed between 7am and 10pm.

Carlsbad

• The City of Carlsbad limits occupancy to 2 people per bedroom plus 1 person per unit.  If the property is a 2-bedroom home, then maximum overnight occupancy is 5… this includes minor children.
  • Studio
    • 3 guests
  • 1 bedroom
    • 3 guests
  • 2 bedrooms
    • 5 guests
  • 3 bedrooms
    • 7 guests
  • 4 bedrooms
    • 9 guests
  • 5 bedrooms
    • 11 guests

Encinitas

• The property owner or agent shall limit overnight occupancy of the short-term rental unit to a specific number of occupants not to exceed two persons per bedroom plus one additional person per dwelling. All other applicable occupancy laws shall apply.

Responsible Agent

• A host must designate a local contact who will be responsible for actively discouraging and preventing any nuisance activity at the premises.
  • The host or designated local contact must respond to a complainant in person or by telephone within one hour for all reported complaints and shall take action to resolve the matter.

Zoning

• Browse addresses within the city of Oceanside using this zoning grid map. 
• Browse addresses within the city of Carlsbad using this zoning grid map.
• Browse addresses within the city of Encinitas using this zoning grid map.

California State Regulations

• New California legislation seeks to create a state-run system for collecting and dispensing transient occupancy tax revenue from short-term vacation rentals.
  • Sen. Mike McGuire introduced a bill, Senate Bill 555, that would create a statewide TOT collection program administered by the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration for local jurisdictions who choose to participate.

STR Management Considerations

Oceanside

• A property inspection is required as part of the STR permit application process. If there are no verifiable complaints or violations received by city staff, the property inspection is to occur every three (3) years.
• A business license is required for residential rental properties of five (5) units or more. 

Carlsbad

• STVRs may only operate within the Coastal Zone.
  • View coastal zone map
• The property owner will be notified via a mailed Notice of Violation if the property is in violation of any of the municipal codes pertaining to STVRs and will be given 10 business days to remedy the violation(s).
• In the event the violation(s) is not remedied by the compliance date, the STVR Code Enforcement Department will issue an Administrative Citation.  The citation will outline the nature of the violation(s), corrective measures to bring the property into compliance with code and carries a fine for each violation.
  • Fine Schedule
    • Administrative Citation #1      $100 per violation
    • Administrative Citation #2      $200 per violation
    • Administrative Citation #3      $500 per violation
  • The property owner has the right to appeal any citation within 30 days from the date the citation was issued or mailed, whichever is the latter.  The appellant must submit a fully completed Appeal Request Form and Appeal Rights and Responsibilities Form and must be accompanied by the fine payment.
• Dwelling units approved as affordable housing units may not be used as short-term vacation rentals.

Encinitas

• Short-term (Airbnb) rentals are not permitted in Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs).
• Adjacent Property Owners Notified. Applicants are also required to provide adjacent property owners with the 24-hour, seven-day phone number for a private party responsible for the facility.
• Rental Agreements. Information on the permitted occupancy of the dwelling, parking capacity for each unit, and trash disposal requirements shall be stated in the rental information and agreement provided to prospective renters, prior to their occupancy of the unit.
• The property owner or agent of a short-term rental unit shall comply with all the provisions of the Encinitas Municipal Code.

Data Methodology

For this guide, we analyzed everything from public data sources, assessor records, recently sold homes, data from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, Airbnb data, and more. Chalet ran this data through machine learning models to derive the forecast models with the most accurate predictions.

Glossary

– ADR: Average Daily Rate

– Gross Yield = Median Revenue/Median Home Price

Disclaimer: Short-term rental regulations are in a constant state of change. The below resource is updated when possible, but it should not be taken as legal advice. It is critical that you consult with your local lawyer to ensure you are taking the necessary steps to keep your business safe and legal.