Oxnard Night Caps Rules (2026): What You Need to Know

Oxnard Municipal Code Chapter 15.54, the Short-Term Rental Regulations chapter, establishes a primary-residency framework as the cornerstone of STR regulation in single-family and low-density residential zones. An operator qualifies as a primary residence host if they occupy the dwelling as their principal place of residence for a minimum of 270 days per calendar year. Primary residence hosts may offer hosted rentals — where the owner is present on the property during the guest's stay — an unlimited number of nights annually, subject to the overall permit requirements of the chapter. Unhosted rentals, where the owner vacates the entire unit for the guest, are capped at 90 nights per calendar year. The 90-night cap resets on January 1 of each year and is self-reported through mandatory quarterly activity reports submitted to the Community Development Department; the City also cross-references reporting with data obtained from hosting platforms under California's platform data-sharing requirements.

In Oxnard's single-family residential zones (R-1) and low-density multi-family zones (R-2), non-owner-occupied properties are ineligible for STR registration. This prohibition is grounded in Oxnard's General Plan housing policies and reflects the city's designation as a predominantly working-class coastal community where loss of long-term rental housing stock to short-term platforms has been identified as a policy concern. Properties in commercial zones, mixed-use overlay areas, and coastal resort overlay districts may be eligible for non-owner-occupied STR permits, but those applications are subject to discretionary review and Planning Commission approval rather than over-the-counter issuance.

Permits are issued for one calendar year by the Community Development Department and must be renewed annually before the prior permit expires. The STR permit number must be prominently displayed on all platform listings. Operators are required to designate a local contact person — reachable by phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week — who can respond to complaints or emergencies at the property within 60 minutes. Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) at the city's applicable rate must be collected from guests and remitted to the Finance and Business Services Department monthly; major platforms collect and remit TOT directly on behalf of Oxnard hosts under state-level agreements. Contact Oxnard Community Development at (805) 385-7400 for permit questions.