City Watch
Short-term rental rules in Nevada City, CA
How Nevada City 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.
- Hosted-only: property may not be used solely for short-term rental
- Whole-home absentee STR foreclosed (owner-present hosted use)
- per-property limit of 2 units rented at a time
- annual ministerial registration required plus TOT
Based on: Nevada City Municipal Code §17.72.080 (Hosted short-term rentals); added by Ord. No. 2015-12 adopted 2015-12-09
Summary of the rule
§17.72.080(B)(7): 'This Section does not and is not intended to permit an Owner to use his or her Property solely for Hosted short-term rentals.' Only 'Hosted short-term rental' is authorized (§B: 'the Hosted short-term rental of Units within a Property by the Owner is permitted within all residential zones'). 'Property' is defined as single-family residential (§A(2)). This forecloses dedicated whole-home / absentee STR.
View the ordinance source ↗✓ Verified
Regulatory change ahead
Measure Q is a city-drafted update of the short-term rental ordinance placed on the November 2026 ballot. The city separately streamlined hosted short-term rental permitting under § 17.72.080 effective April 24, 2025. 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 17, 2026 · Sources · Report an error
Pending legislation
Monitoring Nevada City · system last checked Oct 25, 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.