Boulder Creek, California

Short-term rentals are legal in Boulder Creek but tightly regulated and capped. Because Boulder Creek is unincorporated, Santa Cruz County’s STR ordinance applies (County Code 13.10.694 for non-hosted/vacation rentals, 13.10.690 for hosted rentals). A Non-Hosted Rental Permit covers whole-home rentals; a Hosted Rental Permit covers renting one to three bedrooms while the owner or long-term resident occupies the property. New non-hosted permit fees run $1,757.90 for homes of three bedrooms or fewer and $3,316.45 for four or more bedrooms, with a $1,757.90 renewal fee; hosted permits cost $660.95 new and $570.55 to renew. Permits last five years and renewal requires proof of significant use, transient occupancy tax payment, CruzAware registration, and active platform listings. The county collects a 14% Transient Occupancy Tax on vacation rentals, plus tourism marketing district assessments. Permits are capped: Boulder Creek falls in the county’s ‘Outside Designated Areas’ bucket, subject to a countywide cap of 270 non-hosted and 185 hosted permits, issued first-applied and evaluated twice a year (January 15 and July 15), with a waitlist fee of $145 a year. Only one STR permit is allowed per owner, entity, or property, and STRs are prohibited in mobile home parks, deed-restricted affordable housing, apartment buildings, and on parcels with an accessory dwelling unit. Owner-occupancy is required only for hosted rentals; whole-home non-hosted rentals do not require the owner to live on-site. Enforcement is rated strict, and the county overhauled its ordinance in August 2025, adding a complaint hotline, expanded inspection authority, platform-listing enforcement, and tenant protections.