Ventura County · checked 2026-09-16
Can you BnB it in Ventura?
RestrictedVentura requires a city permit for any short-term vacation rental or homestay and caps whole-home STVR permits by area (40 Avenue, 100 Downtown, 100 Pierpont with per-lane limits, 35 Harbor/Keys, 35 Midtown, 45 Eastside), with unlimited homestay permits. Permits are limited to one per owner, exclude ADUs and entity-owned homes, do not survive a sale except in a divorce, and buyers in full areas go on a waitlist.
The rules, with their sources
Permit or licenseA permit or license is required before operating.L16.455.040 · code text · checked 2026-09-16
Hosted onlyThe code does not limit rentals to hosted stays.L1SBMC Chapter 6.455, repealed and replaced by Ord. No. 2024-009 section 2, adopted December 10, 2024; amended by Ord. No. 2026-008 section 8, May 12, 2026; original chapter Ord. 2007-014 (June 4, 2007) · code text · checked 2026-09-16
Primary residenceThe code does not require the rental to be the operator's primary residence.L1SBMC Chapter 6.455, repealed and replaced by Ord. No. 2024-009 section 2, adopted December 10, 2024; amended by Ord. No. 2026-008 section 8, May 12, 2026; original chapter Ord. 2007-014 (June 4, 2007) · code text · checked 2026-09-16
Permit capPermits are capped at 355.L16.455.080 · code text · checked 2026-09-16
Caps and limitsPer-area STVR caps (6.455.080): Area 1 Avenue 40, Area 2 Downtown 100, Area 3-A Pierpont 100 with a per-lane cap of 10 percent of dwelling units per lane (at least one per lane), Area 3-B Harbor/Keys 35, Area 4 Midtown 35, Area 5 Eastside 45; total 355. Homestay permits are unlimited in every area. One STVR permit per owner going forward (6.455.040(A)(7) with 6.455.085); owners holding more permits keep at most two citywide (one in Pierpont) renewable for five years from the effective date. Multi-unit properties: one unit for properties of 6 or fewer units, 10 percent of units for 7 or more (6.455.070). No permits for ADUs, JADUs or any unit on a lot with one, entity-owned properties unless all owners are natural persons, deed-restricted affordable units, mobile homes in parks, or RVs (6.455.070).L16.455.080 · code text · checked 2026-09-16
Transfer when the home sellsPermits automatically expire upon sale or transfer of ownership of the property, in whole or in part, with one exception: transfer to a former spouse or domestic partner in dissolution proceedings (6.455.050). Permits are one-year terms requiring renewal, and STVR permits also expire if the owner did not remit the council-set minimum TOT in the preceding 12 months. When a capped area is full, buyers join the waitlist under 6.455.090.L16.455.050 · code text · checked 2026-09-16
Read the code text →
In the city's own words
6.455.040“A short-term vacation rental permit or homestay permit is required for an owner of a short-term vacation rental or homestay to in any form rent, offer to rent, or advertise for rent the short-term vacation rental or homestay as provided in this chapter.” source
6.455.080“The number of short-term vacation rental permits for dwelling units located in this area shall not exceed 40 permits.” source
6.455.080“The number of short-term vacation rental permits issued in each Pierpont lane as depicted in Appendix B of this chapter shall not exceed 10 percent of the dwelling units on that lane, rounded down to the nearest whole number, except that at least one short-term vacation rental will be authorized to operate in each lane.” source
6.455.080“An unlimited number of homestay permits are permitted in this area.” source
Citation: SBMC Chapter 6.455, repealed and replaced by Ord. No. 2024-009 section 2, adopted December 10, 2024; amended by Ord. No. 2026-008 section 8, May 12, 2026; original chapter Ord. 2007-014 (June 4, 2007)
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How this page was verified
Verified from the municipal code (level 1), checked on 2026-09-16 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.