Is it legal to rent out a home without a permit in San Francisco, USA?

In San Francisco, the legality of renting out a home without a permit largely depends on the type of rental and the duration for which the property is being rented. For short-term rentals (less than 30 days), San Francisco requires property owners to obtain a business registration certificate and a short-term residential rental certificate from the Office of Short-Term Rentals. This requirement is part of the city’s efforts to regulate the impact of short-term rentals on local housing availability and community dynamics. For long-term rentals, different regulations may apply, primarily governed by the San Francisco Rent Ordinance and various building and safety codes, but typically, a specific rental permit is not required unless the property is subject to specific local or state laws.

Trivia: San Francisco was one of the first cities to enact strict regulations on short-term rentals, largely in response to the rise of platforms like Airbnb. These regulations were designed to preserve housing stock for long-term residents amidst concerns that such platforms were turning residential units into de facto hotels.