City Watch
Short-term rental rules in Palm Springs, CA
How Palm Springs 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.
- Neighborhood cap: ~20% of single-family homes per neighborhood
- Annual citywide new-certificate limit; lottery waitlist
- No primary-residence requirement, but the saturation cap is the supply ceiling
- Measure C (2017) ban failed, then cap ordinance
Based on: Palm Springs Municipal Code Ch. 5.25 (Vacation Rentals)
Summary of the rule
PSMC §5.25.045 'Caps on Certificates based on Neighborhood': VR neighborhood percentage cap = 20%, where the percentage = (residential dwelling units in a neighborhood holding a non-junior VR registration certificate) / (TOTAL residential dwelling units in that neighborhood) per §5.25.030 — denominator is ALL residential dwelling units, NOT single-family homes.
Active litigation / open question
Measure C (June 5, 2018 election ballot initiative) sought to ban most vacation rentals in residential zones; failed at the ballot, after which Council adopted/amended Ch. 5.25 as a cap-based regulatory compromise. 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 8, 2026 · Sources · Report an error
Pending legislation
Monitoring Palm Springs · 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.