CanIBnBCalifornia STR Rules
Kern County · checked 2026-09-13

Can you BnB it in Ridgecrest?

The rules, with their sources

Permit or licenseNo permit is required; the code has no short-term rental permit program.L19-141(a) · code text · checked 2026-09-13
Transfer when the home sellsCode silent on transfer. There is no short-term rental permit in the Ridgecrest Municipal Code, so nothing transfers on sale. A buyer who operates transient lodging must register as an operator for the city transient occupancy tax under Chapter 9 Article V and hold a business license under Chapter 9 Article VI.L1Ridgecrest Municipal Code Chapter 9 Licenses, Taxation and Miscellaneous Business Regulations, Article V Transient Occupancy Tax, Secs. 9-140 and 9-141 (Code 1980, Secs. 3-4.102 and 3-4.103; Ord. No. 91-18, Sec. 2); Chapter 106 Zoning, Sec. 106-2 Definitions · code text · checked 2026-09-13
Read the code text →

In the city's own words

9-140“any person who, for any period of not more than 30 consecutive days, either at his own expense or at the expense of another, obtains lodging or the use of any lodging space in any hotel, as herein defined, for which lodging or use of lodging space a charge is made.” source
9-140“any structure, or any portion of any structure, which is occupied or intended or designed for occupancy by transients for dwelling, lodging or sleeping purposes, and including any hotel, inn, tourist home or house, motel, studio hotel, bachelor hotel, lodginghouse, roominghouse, apartment house, dormitory, public or private club, mobilehome or house trailer at a fixed location, or other similar structure or portion thereof.” source
9-141(a)“For the privilege of occupancy in any hotel, each transient is subject to and shall pay a tax in the amount of ten percent of the rent charged by the operator.” source
106-2“a building, or portion of a building, with access provided through a common entrance, lobby or hallway to six or more guest rooms, usually designed to be rented or hired out as temporary or overnight accommodations for guests, but, in some cases, contain permanent residents.” source

Citation: Ridgecrest Municipal Code Chapter 9 Licenses, Taxation and Miscellaneous Business Regulations, Article V Transient Occupancy Tax, Secs. 9-140 and 9-141 (Code 1980, Secs. 3-4.102 and 3-4.103; Ord. No. 91-18, Sec. 2); Chapter 106 Zoning, Sec. 106-2 Definitions

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Verified from the municipal code (level 1), checked on 2026-09-13 by the CanIBnB research desk. Research is AI assisted and human reviewed; the method, the level system, and the re-check schedule are on the How we verify page. If anything here is wrong, report it and it goes in the public corrections log.