PRESS RELEASE

Long Beach, CA - The City announced today that it will be conducting a random drawing lottery to establish a priority registration list for non-primary residence short-term rentals (STR), as allowed under a recently enacted Ordinance adopted by the Long Beach City Council. The first 800 lottery applicants selected will obtain a reservation that can then be used to register their non-primary residence as a legal STR with the City.

“Short-term rentals can provide many benefits and opportunities for residents and visitors,” said Mayor Robert Garcia. “This program will help ensure that short-term rentals and leases across the city are safe and maintain the livability of our community.”

The Development Services Department will begin accepting online applications for the lottery drawing on Jan. 28, 2021 at 8:30 a.m. Entries will be accepted for approximately three weeks and will close on Feb. 17, 2021, at 11:59 p.m. The random drawing will be held shortly thereafter and conducted as follows:

• The first 800 applications drawn will obtain a reservation to register.
• All entrants will be notified of their individual results via email and provided information on next steps.
• Entries that are drawn after the first 800 will be placed on a reservation waiting list in the order in which they were drawn.

Detailed lottery information, along with the electronic application form, is available on the STRs Program webpage. For assistance, property owners or operators may call 562.570.6820 or email shorttermrentals@longbeach.gov.

Following the lottery drawing, City staff will begin accepting and processing new reservation applications on a first-come, first-served basis. If a waiting list is established, it will be posted on the website and updated periodically. 

The process for registering primary residence STRs is already underway and will continue without interruption. In addition, the City also continues to maintain a list of residential apartment building property owners and homeowners’ associations (HOAs) in Long Beach who want to prohibit anyone from obtaining a primary STR registration on their property. More information on primary residence registrations may be found on the STRs webpage.

As established through the Ordinance, operators with unregistered STRs, both primary and non-primary, have until April 22, 2021, to register with the City.

To learn more about the STRs Program, including information about STR guidelines to help ensure the safety and livability of Long Beach neighborhoods, go to longbeach.gov/strs. The City also maintains an STR complaint hotline. People can report any concerns or nuisance activity online or by calling 562.568.8665.

For additional information about housing in Long Beach, visit longbeach.gov/lbds or view the City’s Resources for Homeowners, Renters and Landlords.

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