Seal Beach HOA Guide: Local Rules for Boards and Owners

Seal Beach defines a short-term rental as a home, or part of one, rented for 29 or fewer consecutive nights. Ordinance 1701 (2023), now section 11.4.05.135 of the Municipal Code, requires a city permit and a business license. Coastal Commission staff recommended approving the program with conditions for the Commission’s July 2024 meeting. The rules include:

• Where: only in the coastal zone, which the city’s FAQ describes as the areas of the city south of Westminster Boulevard.
• How many: active permits are capped at 1% of the homes in the coastal zone. The Coastal Commission’s staff report counted 4,709 homes there, which works out to 47 permits.
• Waitlist: the city’s FAQ says it is not accepting new permit applications and keeps a waiting list. Permits do not transfer when a home is sold.
• Limits: two guests per bedroom plus two more, and never more than 12. Parties, weddings and other large events are not allowed, and a local contact must respond to complaints within one hour.
• Fees and tax: $600 for the first year and $400 for each renewal, subject to change, plus the 12% Transient Occupancy Tax.

Here is the part that matters most for boards. The ordinance says a rental must follow HOA and condominium rules, and the owner must show the rental is not prohibited by the CC&Rs. A letter from the association satisfies this, and the city’s FAQ says proof of HOA approval is required before the city approves a permit. Expect owners to ask your board for that letter, and decide ahead of time who signs it.

Complaints about an unpermitted rental go to the city at STR@sealbeachca.gov. Nighttime disturbances go to the Seal Beach Police Department at (562) 799-4100.

The Coastal Commission describes Seal Beach’s coastal zone as bounded by Long Beach on the west, Westminster Avenue on the north and Huntington Beach on the south and east. The city does not have a certified Local Coastal Program. Its 2008 draft was never certified, and the city sent a revised draft Land Use Plan to the Commission for comment on May 9, 2023. Until a program is certified, coastal development permits come from the Coastal Commission rather than the city.

For associations, the surprise is in the Commission’s 2024 staff report on the city’s rental program. It says a court decision confirmed that HOAs must obtain a coastal development permit before establishing a ban on short-term rentals, and that any ban adopted since the Coastal Act was enacted requires one. The report names four associations in the coastal zone: Heron Pointe, Surfside Colony, River Beach and Ocean Place. It notes that Heron Pointe and Surfside Colony ban short-term rentals in their CC&Rs.

If your coastal association is thinking about a new rental ban, talk with your attorney about coastal permitting before the vote. For a common-area project near the water, ask Community Development at (562) 431-2527 whether a coastal permit is needed.

The city’s parking page says the residential program lets residents park on their own streets without worrying about posted restrictions, but it does not list which streets are in the program. The city pages we read also do not cover RVs, oversized vehicles or parking on private HOA streets, so we could not confirm those rules. The Police Department’s Traffic Division enforces parking. Call the police main line at (562) 799-4100 before you plan around a rule.

As general good practice, tell landscape and repair vendors about the contractor permit before they start a job that puts their trucks on a city street.

The City of Seal Beach Water Services provides water to most of the city and bills every two months. The city’s 2025 draft environmental report for its housing update notes one exception: the Shops at Rossmoor are served by Golden State Water. The city is a member agency of the Municipal Water District of Orange County (MWDOC), the regional wholesaler that runs the county’s water-saving rebate programs.

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.

MWDOC’s page does not say how HOA common areas are classified, and it notes that amounts may vary by participating agency. Call MWDOC at (714) 593-5036 before you plan a common-area conversion. The city adopted a water shortage contingency plan amendment and Ordinance 1695 in 2022. We could not open the ordinance text, so ask Water Services at (562) 431-2527, ext. 1309, which watering rules apply today.

The city collects sewage and sends it to the Orange County Sanitation District for treatment. Its Public Works page says homeowners are responsible for the sewer lateral on private property, from the home to the sewer main. In a condominium or townhome community, your governing documents usually decide whether the owner or the association maintains that line, so check them before a backup turns into a dispute.

• Report a sewer overflow or blockage to Public Works at (562) 431-2527, ext. 1414, during business hours, or to police dispatch after hours.
• Republic Services collects residential trash, recycling and green waste, and the residential trash fee is on the city water bill. The city’s 2025 draft environmental report says Leisure World’s trash service is provided by Athens Services.
• A private contractor sweeps public streets, paved public alleys and some parking lots. Sweeping is cancelled on major holidays and in heavy, sustained rain.
• A private contractor also maintains and trims city trees under the city’s Street Tree Master Plan.

Seal Beach is one of the 23 member cities of the Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) and is part of OCFA Division 1. The city’s fire page lists the division chief at (714) 638-6343. The city also runs its own Marine Safety and Lifeguards department for the beach.

The city pages we checked do not discuss fire hazard severity zones, and we did not confirm whether any part of Seal Beach is in one. Ask OCFA before you assume a common-area slope or planting is exempt from defensible space rules.

Leisure World, the gated 55-plus community whose main gate is on Seal Beach Boulevard, has about 9,500 residents in 6,608 homes by its own count. It is made up of 16 mutual corporations, each with its own board, plus the Golden Rain Foundation, which administers the shared trust property. City rules on this page apply there too, but the mutuals and GRF add their own layer.

Our Leisure World Seal Beach HOA guide explains how the mutuals, GRF and city rules fit together.