City Watch
Short-term rental rules in Big Sur, CA
How Big Sur regulates short-term rentals: the rules that apply, their sources, and pending changes.
Rules here limit which homes may operate as short-term rentals, how many, where, or for how many nights a year.
- Big Sur is unincorporated — governed by Monterey County; Big Sur lies wholly within the Coastal Zone (Big Sur Land Use Plan / LCP)
- SUPPLY DEVICE (rating lever, in force): ongoing commercial / unhosted whole-home vacation rentals are prohibited in Big Sur and Carmel Highlands under the Coastal Vacation Rental Regulations — the ~37 existing unhosted Big Sur rentals are removed. This prohibition stands.
- Countywide 4% cap on commercial STRs as a share of unincorporated-area housing stock — in force
- Two allowed rental CATEGORIES remain distinct: (a) homestays (owner present on-site, renting a room within the residence), and (b) a LIMITED whole-house 'vacation rental' allowance of up to 30 days per year across up to 3 separate rentals (aimed at events like Car Week / AT&T Pro-Am). Whole-house is NOT flatly banned — only ongoing commercial/unhosted whole-home operation is.
- STR of ADUs prohibited
- Coastal ordinance (No. 5439) certified by the CA Coastal Commission 2025-08-13 (6-2), adopted 2025-09-23, effective 2025-10-24 — durable and rating-determining for the commercial prohibition
- CURRENT ENFORCEMENT SUSPENSION (litigation): Monterey County is NOT enforcing two provisions in both inland and coastal areas — (1) the primary-residence / resident-owner requirement for homestays, and (2) the natural-persons-only restriction that barred corporate/entity owners from vacation rentals. So today a non-resident and an entity owner are not excluded from the permitted categories; the commercial whole-home prohibition and 4% cap are unaffected.
Based on: Monterey County Coastal Vacation Rental Regulations, Ordinance No. 5439 — adopted by Board of Supervisors 2025-09-23
Summary of the rule
PRIMARY (County of Monterey): the Commercial Vacation Rental (CVR) Limitations by Coastal Planning Area table lists 'Big Sur Coast Land Use Plan — (prohibited)'. Commercial Vacation Rentals (whole-house, owner-not-present, rented more than 3 times/year) are PROHIBITED in the Big Sur coastal zone — an in-force zoning-exclusion supply device. Only Homestays (owner primary-residence, present) and Limited Vacation Rentals (whole house up to 3 rentals/yr) remain, and an owner may hold an interest in only ONE Commercial VR countywide. Coastal Vacation Rental Regulations (Ord. No. 5439) adopted by Board of Supervisors 2025-09-23, effective 2025-10-24 (regulated under MCC §20.64.290; cap tracker active after 2025-10-24).
View the ordinance source ↗✓ Verified
Active litigation / open question
Monterey County Vacation Rental Alliance v. County of Monterey (Monterey County Superior Court, Case No. 24CV004922 2024) — In Monterey County Vacation Rental Alliance v. County of Monterey (Case No. 24CV004922), the court found two provisions of the County's vacation-rental/homestay ordinances unconstitutional, and the County has suspended enforcement of those two provisions in both inland and coastal areas: (1) the provision treating non-resident owners differently than residents for homestays (Dormant Commerce Clause), and (2) the provision treating corporate/entity owners differently than natural-person owners for all vacation-rental types (Equal Protection); the challenged and stayed provisions are the residency and entity-ownership conditions, NOT the Big Sur coastal commercial vacation-rental prohibition or the 4% cap, which remain in force. The litigation is ongoing and the County has stated it cannot predict future rulings that may affect enforceability. Source ↗
Reported as fact only, reflecting the code as currently in effect — not legal advice, and not a prediction of the outcome. Verify current status before relying on it.
Last reviewed Sep 9, 2026 · Sources · Report an error
Pending legislation
Monitoring Big Sur · system last checked Oct 13, 2026
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City Watch provides good-faith summaries of publicly available information as of the review date shown. Rules, enforcement, and permit availability can change, and summaries may contain errors or omissions. Ratings describe the general regulatory environment; they do not establish whether a particular property or stay is permitted. This is general information, not legal advice. Before buying, listing, or hosting, verify applicable requirements with the responsible authorities and review any HOA, condominium, deed, or lease restrictions.