Adam Boehrer Pacific Sotheby's International Realty

Verified Against the Laguna Beach Municipal Code, October 2026

Laguna Beach short-term rental rules: no new permits in residential neighborhoods.

Laguna Beach still allows short-term rentals. Just not where most people picture them. Since 2020, new short-term lodging is limited to a handful of commercial and downtown zoning districts, capped at 300 units citywide, and a permit issued under the current rules belongs to the owner, not the house. Here is what the ordinance says, where it applies, and what changes when a property sells.

The short version

New short-term rentals in Laguna live in the commercial districts. Nowhere else.

  • 300

    Citywide cap

    Short-term lodging units, not counting home shares. Includes units approved before October 2020.

  • 165

    Home share units

    Extra allowance, owner on site, only inside the permitted districts. Use permit fee waived.

  • 14%

    Tax on every booking

    12% transient occupancy tax plus a 2% Tourism Marketing District assessment.

Laguna Beach closed its residential neighborhoods to new short-term rentals in 2020, and the Coastal Commission certified the deal. If the house you are looking at sits in an R-1, R-2, R-3 or VC zone, you cannot start a new short-term rental there. Period.

What is left is a short list of commercial and downtown districts, a 300-unit citywide ceiling, and since July 2025 a second license layered on top of the use permit. The fees are set by City Council resolution. The real cost is eligibility and paperwork.

Where it is allowed

The list of allowed districts is short. Check it first.

Section 25.23.030(A) of the Laguna Beach Municipal Code allows short-term lodging only in these zoning districts:

  • LB/P, C-N, C-1 and CH-M, with an Administrative Use Permit.
  • Downtown Specific Plan districts CBD-1, CBD-2, CBD Central Bluffs, CBD Office and CBD Visitor Commercial, also with an Administrative Use Permit.
  • SLV (South Laguna Village Commercial), with a Conditional Use Permit.

The code is blunt about everything else: no owner of a dwelling outside those districts "shall rent that unit or units for a short term (30 consecutive days or less)." The City publishes a map of the permitted zoning districts. Pull it up before you fall in love with a listing.

Three more limits inside the allowed districts

No more than 20% of the allowable rental units in the permitted districts can convert to short-term lodging, and the citywide total stops at 300. A property with five or fewer units can convert one unit. A property with more than five can convert 20% of them, rounded down. Units under an affordable, senior or disabled housing covenant cannot be used at all.

How close is the cap?

The City's own list of approved short-term lodging permits, revised March 25, 2026, shows 83 approvals covering 151 units. Of those, 37 approvals and 85 units sit in the R-1, R-2, R-3 and VC zones, carried over from before the 2020 ban. That list is approvals, not a live count of who is renting this week, so treat it as a ceiling check, not a vacancy sign. The question to ask Planning is simple: how many of the 300 are spoken for today.

The part that costs people money

Buying a Laguna rental? The permit is personal. The old ones are the exception.

This is where Laguna gets more interesting than its neighbors, and where buyers get it wrong in both directions.

Permits issued under the current rules do not come with the house

Section 25.23.050 says a use permit for short-term lodging "shall not run with the land." The permission is "personal and limited to the owner of the property to whom the administrative use permit or conditional use permit is issued." Any attempt to convey it to another person, or move it to another property, is void and a code violation.

The newer license says the same thing. Section 5.84.030: the license "may not be transferred from one person to another," does not run with the land, and "any change of ownership of the short-term lodging unit requires a new short-term lodging unit license."

Units legally operating before October 2020 are different

For a unit that was legally permitted before October 2020, sections 25.23.060 and 25.23.065 say the right to keep operating "shall run with the land." That covers the grandfathered units in the residential zones and the older units in the commercial districts. The City's own page puts it plainly: "The use runs with the land as opposed to the owner."

Two catches, and both are deal killers if nobody checks:

  • The 12-month rule. The right lapses if short-term use is "abandoned or ceases for a period of twelve or more consecutive months." A seller who stopped renting during a long listing period may have already lost it.
  • The 14-day filing. Section 25.23.040(R): upon a change in ownership, a new Administrative Use Permit or Conditional Use Permit is required to continue operating, "which the owner shall submit to the City within fourteen days of said change." You will also need your own Chapter 5.84 license.

So the honest summary: a grandfathered Laguna unit can carry its use through a sale, but only if it has been operating, the paperwork is current, and the buyer files on time. A permit issued after 2020 does not carry at all. Underwrite the house on what it is worth as a house, and treat the rental income as something you have confirmed with the City, in writing, before your contingencies expire.

What the City will ask for

The Laguna rulebook, line by line.

Rule What the code says Where it says it
Use permit Administrative Use Permit in most allowed districts. Conditional Use Permit in SLV. Valid three years, then renewal. 25.23.030(A), 25.23.040(Q)
License Short-Term Lodging Unit License required since July 1, 2025. Enforcement began October 1, 2025. Expires with the use permit. 5.84.030; City STL page
Neighbor notice Written notice to occupants of every residence and business within 200 feet, at least 30 days before the license issues. 5.84.040
Surety bond $1,500 bond from a California-licensed surety. 5.84.040, 5.84.120
Insurance Liability coverage of at least $500,000. 25.23.040(P)
Fire inspection Evidence the home passed a Laguna Beach Fire Department safety inspection. 25.23.030
Occupancy Two overnight guests per bedroom. Daytime guests capped at two per bedroom, 20 maximum. 25.23.040(A)
Parking Guest vehicles limited to on-site spaces. None parked on a street serving residential homes. 25.23.040(B)
Local contact Reachable 24/7 and responding within 60 minutes. 25.23.040, 5.84.070
Advertising Every listing shows the license in the form “Laguna Beach License No. ____” plus the business license and use permit numbers. No on-site rental signs. 5.84.100, 25.23.040(H) and (I)
Events Weddings, receptions and large parties prohibited. Three confirmed large-gathering violations trigger a revocation hearing. 25.23.040(J) and (K)
Taxes 12% transient occupancy tax plus 2% LBTMD assessment. Quarterly returns even in a quarter with no rentals. 5.05.030, 25.23.040(N)
Revocation Lose the license and you wait at least three years to apply again, for any property in the City. 5.84.150

Two things the code does not do. It does not set a minimum number of nights; the application asks you to state the minimum stay you will advertise. And it does not mention HOAs. That does not make your CC&Rs irrelevant. Read them before anything else, because a private rental restriction can stop you even where the City says yes.

Questions about a specific parcel go to Laguna Beach Planning at (949) 497-0713. The governing code is Chapter 25.23 (Short-Term Lodging), Chapter 5.84 (Short-Term Lodging Units, Ordinance 1719, adopted June 24, 2025) and Chapter 5.05 (Hotel-Motel Room Tax).

Quick answers

Laguna Beach short-term rental questions.

Does Laguna Beach allow short-term rentals?

Yes, in limited places. New short-term lodging (30 consecutive days or less) is allowed only in the LB/P, C-N, C-1 and CH-M zoning districts and the CBD-1, CBD-2, CBD Central Bluffs, CBD Office and CBD Visitor Commercial districts of the Downtown Specific Plan with an Administrative Use Permit, and in the SLV district with a Conditional Use Permit. LBMC 25.23.030(A).

Can I get a short-term rental permit for a house in a Laguna Beach residential neighborhood?

No. LBMC 25.23.060 says no new short-term lodging may be established in the R-1, R-2, R-3 or VC zoning districts. Units legally permitted there before October 2020 may continue as legal nonconforming uses.

Is there a cap on short-term rentals in Laguna Beach?

Yes. A maximum of 300 short-term lodging units citywide, not counting home shares and including units approved before October 2020, plus up to 165 home-share units inside the permitted districts. No more than 20% of allowable rental units in the permitted districts may convert, and a property with five or fewer units may convert only one. LBMC 25.23.030(B) and (C).

Where is the Laguna Beach short-term rental map?

The City of Laguna Beach publishes a map of the zoning districts where short-term lodging is permitted on its Short-Term Lodging page, along with a list of approved short-term lodging permits (revised March 25, 2026).

Does a Laguna Beach short-term rental permit transfer to a buyer?

A permit issued under the current rules does not. LBMC 25.23.050 says it does not run with the land and is personal to the owner, and LBMC 5.84.030 says the license is not transferable and a change of ownership requires a new license. For units legally permitted before October 2020, the right to continue runs with the land under LBMC 25.23.060 and 25.23.065, but it lapses after 12 consecutive months without short-term use, and the new owner must submit a new use permit within 14 days of the ownership change under LBMC 25.23.040(R).

What taxes apply to a Laguna Beach short-term rental?

A 12% transient occupancy tax under LBMC 5.05.030 plus a 2% Laguna Beach Tourism Marketing District assessment, 14% in total according to the City. Returns are filed quarterly, including quarters with no rentals.

What is the Laguna Beach short-term rental ordinance?

Two chapters of the Laguna Beach Municipal Code. Chapter 25.23 (Short-Term Lodging, Ordinance 1651, certified by the California Coastal Commission in 2020) controls where short-term lodging is allowed and the use permit. Chapter 5.84 (Short-Term Lodging Units, Ordinance 1719, effective July 1, 2025, enforced from October 1, 2025) adds a license, a $1,500 surety bond, a nuisance response plan and 200-foot neighbor notice.

Sources

Where every rule on this page comes from.

Verified October 29, 2026 against the City of Laguna Beach's own code and pages. Rules change, and the City is the final word on any specific parcel. Call Planning at (949) 497-0713 and get the answer in writing.

Run it on a real address

Looking at a specific property in Laguna Beach?

Send me the address. I will check the zoning district against the City's map, whether the property shows on the City's approved permit list, whether it is a pre-2020 unit that can carry its use through a sale, and what the 14-day filing looks like. If the answer is that the income does not survive the sale, that is what I will tell you, and it is better to hear it before the offer. Text or email is the easiest way in.

Phone 949.541.8247

Email [email protected]

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