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Published July 15, 2026
Yes, with a permit under HMC Ch. 17.74. You need a business license and must give the city 24 hour inspection access.
Yes, but only with a permit. Hawthorne Municipal Code Chapter 17.74 allows short term rentals in eligible property types citywide, including neighborhoods near SoFi Stadium, if the operator holds a valid short term rental permit and a business license, registers for transient occupancy tax, and keeps the unit available for city inspection with 24 hours notice. Skip the permit and you are running an illegal rental, game days or not.
Hawthorne sits inland of the beach cities, right up against Inglewood and SoFi Stadium, so it gets a real slice of NFL Sundays, concerts, and event weekend demand without the coastal zoning fights that shut down short term rentals in Redondo Beach and Manhattan Beach. Instead of an outright ban, the city built a permit system under Chapter 17.74 of the Hawthorne Municipal Code, titled Short-Term Rental Permits. The logic is simple: let the demand exist, but put guardrails on the properties cashing in on it.
That matters for owners near the stadium corridor especially. Event-weekend nightly rates in Hawthorne and Inglewood have become a real income line for landlords who used to just run standard 12-month leases. But the permit is not a rubber stamp, and the requirements are specific enough that owners who try to wing it on a listing site without checking the local code tend to get caught.
Under HMC Chapter 17.74, a short term rental permittee must hold a current business license, issued under the city's separate business license chapter, in addition to the short term rental permit itself, and register for the city's transient occupancy tax. That is multiple approvals, not one, and all of them need to be current, not just obtained once and forgotten.
Eligibility is also limited by property type. The chapter permits short term rentals in single family residences, duplexes, triplexes, and planned unit developments or multifamily buildings with no more than four dwelling units. If your property is a larger apartment building, it does not qualify no matter how strong the event demand is.
The city also reserves inspection rights. A permitted short term rental must be made available for inspection by the city at reasonable times with 24 hours advance notice. That is not a one-time fire inspection before you get the permit. It is a standing obligation that runs for as long as you hold the permit, meaning code enforcement can show up with a day's notice to confirm the unit still meets habitability, safety, and zoning requirements under Title 17 of the municipal code.
Hawthorne also requires a notarized affidavit from the permit holder attesting that the unit meets or exceeds fire and building safety standards. That includes working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and adequate means of egress. This is not boilerplate. If an inspector finds a missing detector or a blocked exit during that 24 hour window, the affidavit itself becomes evidence the permittee misrepresented the property's condition, which is a much bigger problem than a simple code violation.
First, a business license is a city revenue and tracking mechanism separate from the short term rental permit, so owners who only apply for one often find their rental in violation even though they think they are covered. Second, the 24 hour inspection standard is a floor, not a courtesy. The city is not required to give more notice, and refusing access on short notice can itself jeopardize the permit. Third, because Chapter 17.74 sits inside Title 17 (Zoning), the unit still has to satisfy underlying zoning rules for the parcel, meaning not every lot near the stadium automatically qualifies just because demand is there.
Owners considering a conversion purely to chase SoFi Stadium event pricing should also weigh the operational load. Standing inspection access, an annually renewed business license, and habitability affidavits are a different management task than a standard annual lease, and the enforcement risk if any piece lapses falls on the property owner, not the platform the listing runs on.
If you own a Hawthorne rental near the stadium corridor and are eyeing short term rental income, the pathway is legal and open, but it is a compliance commitment, not a listing you set and forget. Get the business license and the short term rental permit both current, keep the smoke and CO detectors documented, and be ready for a 24 hour notice inspection at any point the permit is active.
If you would rather not track permit renewals and inspection windows yourself, that is what we do.
This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Confirm with a licensed professional before you act.
Last verified: July 2026.
Topics: compliance, short term rental, hawthorne, sofi stadium, airbnb
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Schofield Properties is a family run property management company at 323 Richmond St, El Segundo, CA 90245. We have managed the South Bay since 1972 and personally oversee about 186 doors today. Book a call to talk about your property.
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