Checking a Santa Monica short term rental before you book

What the rules say

Santa Monica regulates home sharing under its Home-Sharing Ordinance, in effect since 2015 and updated in 2019. As Airbnb describes it in its help center, hosted rentals, where a primary resident lives on site during the stay, are allowed for stays of 30 days or less. Rentals with no resident on site are not allowed for stays under 30 days. Hosts must register with the city and hold a business license for home sharing.

What to look for on the listing

• A city license or registration number in the license field of the listing.
• Whether the listing says the host lives on the property. An entire home with no host on site for a short stay is worth a question.
• Stays of 30 days or more are treated differently from short stays.

What you can do

Ask the host for the license number, then confirm it with the City of Santa Monica Planning and Community Development department. Rules and enforcement change, so confirm anything important with the City directly.

Deedlore and Santa Monica

Deedlore covers addresses in the City of Los Angeles today. Santa Monica is first on our list of next cities. Leave your email below and we will write when it opens. If your stay is in the City of Los Angeles, the Stay Check is available now.

Sources

• Airbnb Help Center: Santa Monica, California

Common questions