Laguna Beach HOA Guide: Local Rules for Boards and Owners

Chapter 25.23 of the Municipal Code treats any stay of 30 consecutive days or less as short-term lodging. The rules, last updated by Ordinance 1651 in 2020 and tied to a Local Coastal Program amendment, include:

• Where it is allowed: with a use permit, only in certain commercial and downtown districts (LB/P, C-N, C-1, CH-M and parts of the Downtown Specific Plan) and, with a conditional use permit, the SLV zone. Units outside those districts may not be rented short term.
• Residential zones: in R-1, R-2, R-3 and VC zones, no new short-term lodging may be set up, a rule the California Coastal Commission approved in 2020. Legal short-term rentals that already existed may continue, but the right lapses after 12 months in a row without use.
• Home sharing: home share units may be authorized in single-family homes, duplexes and triplexes. The host must live on site for the whole stay.
• Caps: the code also caps how many units can be converted to short-term lodging in mixed-use and commercial areas. The city has updated its licensing and operating rules since, so confirm current caps with the city before relying on them.
• Guests: two overnight guests per bedroom. A three-bedroom unit, for example, may have 6 overnight and 12 in total from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., and no unit may exceed 20. Guest vehicles must use on-site spaces, not residential streets.
• Conduct: quiet hours from 10 p.m. to 10 a.m., a local contact who responds within 60 minutes, and no weddings, receptions or large parties. Three confirmed large or unruly gatherings bring an automatic revocation hearing.
• Enforcement: administrative citations of $1,000 per violation, for each day it continues. Permits last three years, belong to the owner and do not transfer with a sale.

The chapter does not mention homeowners associations or CC&Rs, so a city permit says nothing about whether your documents allow the rental. If your association wants a rule on short stays, have your attorney review it.

The Laguna Beach Fire Department says 87% of the city’s land area is in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone. The city did not adopt the High zone. Ordinance 1664, adopted October 5, 2021, made the city’s Defensible Space Guideline apply to existing structures in the Very High zone from November 5, 2021. Defensible space runs up to 100 feet from a structure, or to the property line if that is closer:

• Fuel modification: new construction and major remodels in the city’s fuel modification zone follow the 2019 Fire Department standards, and homes built under them, or earlier versions, must be kept in the approved fuel-modified state permanently.
• Landscape plans: if an inspection calls for major planting changes on a property with a Design Review Board-approved landscape plan, the revised plan goes through the city’s administrative design review before planting changes begin.
• Selling a home: owners selling a one-to-four-unit home in the Very High zone need a defensible space inspection, required for these sales since July 1, 2021 (Civil Code section 1102.19). Request it through the Fire Department’s online form.
• Weed abatement: done each spring for parcels in the developed part of the city, with dead vegetation and invasive species removed year-round under Ordinance 1510.

The Fire Department offers a free wildfire consultation to any property owner. For an association that maintains slopes or landscaping near structures, it is good practice to ask for one and to check your landscape contract against the zones above. Call Fire Prevention at (949) 497-0352.

Laguna Beach has two city processes for vegetation that blocks a neighbor’s view. Both can reach trees and hedges on association property, so boards should know how they work.

Chapter 12.16 says it does not override private covenants, and private rules that are stricter on vegetation stay in force. City-maintained vegetation and heritage trees are excluded. The city also enforces tree removal without a permit, so check with the city before taking out a large tree.

Laguna Beach neighborhoods can form an assessment district to move overhead utility lines underground. The city’s process page says:

• Starting one: a petition signed by owners of at least 50% of the properties, who also hold more than 50% of the assessable land area. A district needs at least five parcels and 600 feet of overhead wire, or one block, whichever is less.
• City share: the city pays the legally required general benefit or 10% of the cost, whichever is greater, and may add up to about another 10% on evacuation routes.
• The vote: owners get ballots weighted by their proposed assessment. A weighted majority in favor forms the district, and a weighted majority against ends it.
• Paying: bonds are repaid over 15 or 25 years through assessments on the property tax bill, or owners can pay in cash, usually within 30 days of the hearing, for a discount of about 6% to 10%.
• Cost range: the city says 2025 assessments for a single-family home may run from $6,000 to $100,000, and the owner’s own connection usually costs another $5,000 to $15,000, which is not in the assessment.

An undergrounding assessment is separate from association dues and goes on each owner’s tax bill. If a district is proposed around your community, it is good practice to find out whether any common-area parcels will get a ballot and to tell owners early.

These rules come from the city’s Code Enforcement page, which does not cite code sections. Write the construction hours and the leaf blower ban into your landscape and contractor agreements so crews know them before they start.

The County of Orange lists the Laguna Beach County Water District as serving Laguna Beach, Crystal Cove State Park and Emerald Bay, and the South Coast Water District as serving South Laguna, along with Dana Point and north San Clemente. Check the bill for each common-area meter to see which one you have.

Under AB 1572, the 2023 state law on watering nonfunctional turf with drinking water, HOA and common interest development common areas must stop by January 1, 2029. The State Water Board says functional turf is mowed grass in a recreation area or community space, and grass in street rights-of-way and parking lots is not.

Neither district’s website opened for us, so we could not confirm watering days or rebates. Call the Laguna Beach County Water District at (949) 494-1041 or the South Coast Water District at (949) 499-4555 before you plan a common-area conversion.