Palm Desert HOA Guide: Local Rules for Boards and Owners

Palm Desert treats a stay of 27 consecutive nights or less as a short-term rental, and every one needs a city permit under Chapter 5.10 of the municipal code. Where a rental may operate depends on the zone and on who is renting:

• Off-site rentals (the owner does not live there) are allowed in the RE, R-3, DEO, DE and D zones. In the Planned Residential (PR) and Hillside Planned Residential (HPR) zones, they are allowed only if the home is governed by a “functioning HOA” and state law or the current CC&Rs permit short-term rentals. The chapter does not list the R-1 or R-2 zones for off-site rentals.
• On-site rentals (the owner lives in the home and rents a room or casita) are allowed in more zones, including R-1, R-2, PR and HPR. In PR and HPR they are not allowed if a functioning HOA’s CC&Rs prohibit them.
• HPR off-site permits end soon. No new ones are issued, and existing ones must stop operating by December 31, 2026 (section 5.10.080).
• Never allowed in any zone: apartments, accessory dwelling units and junior ADUs.

The code defines a functioning HOA as a common interest development under the Davis-Stirling Act that actively governs use, enforces its rules and maintains the development. On top of that, the city’s permit page requires an HOA approval letter every year. It must carry the current date, the owner’s name and the property address. It must also state that short-term rentals are permitted in the community.

The city is clear that its permit does not override your documents. Section 5.10.020(B) says the chapter does not let an owner violate private CC&Rs, and section 5.10.090(Q) says a rental subject to HOA or condominium rules must follow them. Civil Code section 4741 also does not stop an association from prohibiting rentals of 30 days or less. Civil Code section 4740 adds one limit: a rental ban adopted after an owner bought generally does not apply to that owner.

The host or operator must be reachable around the clock while the unit is rented and respond to a complaint within 30 minutes. Fines under section 5.10.120 are up to $1,000 for a first administrative citation, $3,000 for a second within 12 months and $5,000 for a third, which also brings a two-year revocation. Operating without a permit is $5,000 per citation.

Operators also owe 12% on each stay: the city’s 11% transient occupancy tax and a 1% tourism district assessment. The city notes that booking platforms do not currently collect the 1% assessment. Neighbors can report a problem rental to the city’s 24-hour hotline at (760) 862-6900, and the city links to a lookup of active permits.

CVWD’s water saving guidelines list these prohibited uses. They apply to CVWD customers, so confirm your provider with CVWD’s Find My Water map first:

• Watering that runs off onto neighboring property.
• Spray irrigation during rain of 0.10 inches or more and for 48 hours after.
• Watering driveways and sidewalks, except for health and safety. A pressure washer or water broom is allowed.
• Decorative fountains that do not recirculate.
• Broken sprinklers left unrepaired more than five business days after CVWD gives notice.

After three violations, CVWD says customers may be fined $50 to $2,000 on their bill. It does not set watering days or hours, and it discourages overseeding lawns with winter grass. CVWD’s overseeding page warns that you may incur drought penalties if you do.

CVWD’s HOA and commercial rebates all require pre-approval, and work started before approval does not qualify:

Applications go through CVWD’s online rebate portal with a 12-digit account number and a W-9, and CVWD notes that landscape rebates count as taxable income. Homeowners applying for CVWD’s residential turf rebate must upload an HOA approval letter if they have an HOA, so expect those requests at your architectural committee. Civil Code section 4735 bars an association from banning low-water plants or artificial turf.

A state law passed in 2023 (AB 1572) bars the use of drinking water on nonfunctional turf, meaning decorative grass with no other use. CVWD’s page on the law sets out what it means for associations:

• HOA common areas must stop watering nonfunctional turf with drinking water by January 1, 2029.
• Starting June 30, 2031, HOAs must send compliance reports to the State Water Resources Control Board every three years.
• Residential lawns are exempt. Functional areas such as sports fields and picnic areas are exempt too, as are areas watered with nonpotable water.
• CVWD says penalties can include a fine of $500 per day.

For a golf community, the nonpotable exemption matters. Grass watered with nonpotable water, such as recycled water, is outside the rule, while decorative grass on a drinking-water meter is covered. Find out which meters serve which turf before you plan.

Palm Desert’s fire department is provided through a cooperative agreement between the State of California (CAL FIRE) and the County of Riverside. Its three stations are Station 71 at 73995 Country Club Drive, Station 33 at 44400 Town Center Way and Station 67 at 73200 Mesa View Drive. The Fire Marshal’s office is at City Hall, (760) 776-6388.

The State Fire Marshal released new fire hazard severity zone maps for cities in four phases in February and March 2025. The city’s emergency preparedness page says some Palm Desert properties may now be classified as Moderate, High or Very High, that the city is reviewing the maps before adoption and that state law requires the city to designate the zones by ordinance. Ask the Fire Marshal’s office whether the ordinance has been adopted, and look up each common-area address in the State Fire Marshal’s map viewer.

A seller of a home in a high or very high hazard zone must give the buyer documentation of defensible space compliance where the local agency requires it, or sign an agreement for the buyer to get it (Civil Code section 1102.19). Questions about the maps go to the State Fire Marshal at (916) 633-7655.

These charges appear on the property tax bill and are separate from association dues. The city’s budget for fiscal year 2022-23 lists landscaping and lighting districts formed for landscape and street lighting maintenance, with service levels reduced since 2003-04. The zones it names include:

• Canyon Cove, the Vineyards, Parkview Estates and the Cook and Country Club area.
• Hovley Lane West, Waring Court, Palm Gate and The Grove, which includes palm tree trimming.
• Portola Place, Palm Desert Country Club, K & B at Palm Desert, Canyon Crest and College View Estates.

The same budget lists a benefit assessment district for drainage basin improvements in Section 29. These districts pay for lighting and parkway landscaping in the zones they cover, so check whether a district maintains the parkway outside your wall before you add it to your landscape contract.

Palm Desert’s Code Compliance Division enforces the municipal code on private residential and commercial property, with both proactive and complaint-driven inspections. Call the Code Hotline at (760) 776-6360, email codehotline@palmdesert.gov or use the city’s Palm Desert In Touch tool. For a violation outside working hours, the city says to call the Sheriff’s Department at (760) 836-3215.

The same division handles golf cart permit renewals through the city’s Clariti portal, which is useful to know if your residents drive golf carts. The city also regulates construction hours and noise from property maintenance. We could not read those hours on the city’s pages, so ask the Code Hotline before you set your landscaper’s schedule.