Pasadena HOA Guide: Local Rules for Boards and Owners

Short-term rentals need an annual permit from Planning & Community Development, under Ordinance 7317 and Pasadena Municipal Code section 17.50.296. Permits go only to primary residents who live in the home at least nine months a year. A Type 1 permit covers a hosted rental and a Type 2 permit covers an unhosted one.

The city’s application packet ties the permit to your association:

• A city permit does not supersede HOA or CC&R rules.
• An applicant must not operate if the HOA or CC&Rs prohibit it.
• Neighborhood notice goes to the HOA where one applies. In a multi-family complex it also goes to the HOA and to units that share a wall or floor.
• Renewals need no new neighbor notice unless ownership or the permit type changes.

The permit fee is $123 plus a 3% records fee and payment fees. Hosts also owe transient occupancy tax (12.11%) and a tourism business improvement district assessment (3.89% in year one, then 4.89% through June 30, 2033). Airbnb and VRBO began collecting and remitting these on April 1, 2026, but hosts still file quarterly reports. Questions go to STRPermits@CityofPasadena.net, and tax questions to Treasury at (626) 744-4538.

These permits cover public streets. The city’s permit page does not say how it handles private streets inside associations, and it does not mention a 72-hour rule, so check with the Parking Division at (626) 744-7665 before you tell owners what applies. On association streets and lots, your own parking rules and state towing law do the work.

The Tree Protection Ordinance is Municipal Code Chapter 8.52. It protects these private trees:

• Native trees over 8 inches in diameter at breast height, such as oaks, sycamore, walnut and bay.
• Specimen trees on the City Council’s list.
• Mature trees of 19 inches or more in zones other than RS and RM-12.
• Landmark trees.

A permit from the City Manager is required to injure or remove a protected tree (section 8.52.085). The city decides within 15 business days of a complete application (section 8.52.075). Injury includes root damage, and unpermitted injury is prohibited. Pruning native or specimen trees without injury is exempt (section 8.52.080). Penalties are in section 8.52.160.

The ordinance text does not mention HOAs or common areas, so assume it applies to association land. Questions go to Planning & Community Development at (626) 744-6777.

Pasadena Water and Power supplies the city’s water. Its Turf Replacement Rebate lists homeowners associations among eligible applicants:

• $2 per square foot of turf removed, plus $100 per tree for up to five trees.
• At least 250 square feet. The cap is 5,000 square feet for residential applicants and 50,000 for commercial. The page lists no separate cap for HOAs.
• You must receive a reservation before you start, and then you have 180 days to finish.
• Review takes about four to five weeks, and payment comes eight to ten weeks after approval.
• Only PWP customers qualify.

Commercial applicants use the SoCalWater$mart Commercial Landscape Transformation program at (888) 376-3314. PWP rebate programs are at (626) 744-7311. We could not confirm Pasadena’s permanent watering days and hours on an official page, so ask PWP before you set an irrigation schedule.

The Pasadena Fire Department inspects properties each spring and summer. Its inspection page lists these requirements (Municipal Code sections 14.29.020 and 14.29.040):

• Mow grass and weeds within 200 feet of structures and within 10 feet of combustible fences, streets and driveways.
• Remove dead trees.
• For trees within 30 feet of a structure, keep limbs off the ground up to 3 feet.
• Keep 10 feet clear around chimneys and 5 feet of vertical clearance above roofs, and keep roofs free of debris.
• Keep branches over streets at least 13.5 feet up.
• Address numbers must be at least 4 inches tall and visible (section 14.20.040).

On the fire hazard severity zone map, the city’s page said the State’s updated maps had not yet been adopted when it was posted, and that the city was not proposing additions. We could not confirm whether that has changed, or this year’s clearance deadline. Ask Fire Prevention at (626) 744-7182, or write fhsz@cityofpasadena.net about the zone map.

Property owners are not exempt, and the landscape operator is liable too. Citations are $100, $200, $500 and $1,000. The city’s page does not address HOAs specifically, so put the rules in your landscape contract. Report violations to Code Compliance at (626) 744-8633.