Multifamily and Duplex Properties for Sale in Bodega: Zoning and Rent Rules

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What multifamily in Bodega looks like

Bodega is a crossroads village, not an apartment market. Income property here is usually a house with a second unit, a historic building with living space behind or above a shop, or a rural parcel with a main home and an accessory unit. The County’s Historic District list shows that mix: the 1873 Italianate building at 17110 Bodega Highway has served as schoolhouse, community hall, restaurant and residence, and 17191 Bodega Highway has been both a saloon and a home. For two to four units, read financing 2-4 unit properties; for larger buildings, see apartment building loans.

Where the zoning allows it

Bodega is not an Urban Service Area on the County’s GIS layer, and without public water or sewer the County’s lot-size minimums rise to 1.5 acres for new lots, so density stays low. Whether Chapter 26C (coastal) or Chapter 26 (inland) applies depends on the Coastal Zone line; check the County’s map.

Setting	Two or more units?	Key limits	Code
Village commercial lot, coastal CS	Units attached to the commercial building, with a use permit	Housing under 50% of commercial floor area; 1,000 sq ft per unit	26C CS
Village commercial lot, inland CR or LC	ADU allowed; mixed use allowed in LC, not CR; live/work by use permit	35 ft height, 50% coverage, 1.5 acres for new lots without water or sewer	26 Art. 10
Rural residential, inland RR or AR	No duplexes or multifamily; one home plus ADU	1 to 20 acres per unit; 1.5-acre lots without public water	26 Art. 08
Inland R2 or R3, if mapped	Duplexes and multifamily permitted	6 to 12 or 12 to 20 units per acre	26 Art. 08
Coastal residential or resource lot	One home plus a second dwelling unit	Coastal permit; no junior ADU yet	Coastal ADUs

Coastal second units. Permit Sonoma says coastal ADUs are "second dwelling units" under Section 26C-325.1, junior ADUs are not yet provided for in the Coastal Zone, and a coastal development permit is required. Inland, ADUs are permitted in every residential and commercial zone listed above. See our ADU investment guide.

SB 9. SB 9 applies only in single-family residential zones, and state law generally excludes parcels in a historic district designated by local ordinance, which takes most of the village core out. Rural RR and AR parcels outside the district need a case-by-case check. See our SB 9 lot split guide.

Rent rules: state law only

Rent cap. The Attorney General’s rent cap page, updated July 16, 2026, does not list Sonoma County in a regional group, so the All Other Counties cap applies: up to 8.6% for increases from August 1, 2026 through July 31, 2027 on covered units. No Sonoma County city or the County itself appears on the AG’s local ordinance chart.

Who is covered. A house and its second unit on one lot is often treated as a single-family property, which may be exempt if owned by individuals and the tenant got the required notice; an apartment attached to a commercial building is more likely covered. State just cause and relocation rules follow coverage. See our AB 1482 guide and just cause eviction guide.

Bodega rental property rules

Vacation rentals. A County vacation rental license is required, renewed annually with neighbor notice. The District 5 fact sheet caps guests at 12, restricts corporate ownership, requires written evacuation instructions and says the rules reach the Coastal Zone.
Exclusion and cap districts. Article 79 lets the County bar new vacation rentals or cap them at 5% or 10% of homes; Bodega was not on the 2023 District 5 list.
Historic district. Exterior changes to the 45 listed parcels go through historic design review, including new entries, windows and stairs for added units.
Transfer tax. The County Recorder charges $0.55 per $500, less assumed loans; no city tax applies.

Septic, water and old buildings

Septic decides density. Without public sewer, every added bedroom or unit has to fit an approved septic design, and Permit Sonoma’s well and septic staff review it. Ask for permits, the design flow and recent inspections.

Water. Confirm the source for each building: a private well, a shared well or a small water system. A system serving several connections may hold a state permit and have its own rules on new service.

Age. The County’s list includes buildings from 1859 to 1925. Older wood-frame buildings warrant a structural and seismic retrofit review, and any building with three or more units and elevated balconies or walkways needs SB 721 balcony inspections.

Underwriting a Bodega multifamily purchase

Confirm the Coastal Zone status, base district and the legal unit count.
Check the septic permit and design flow against actual occupancy.
Document the water source and any state water system permit.
Classify units under AB 1482 and model covered increases at or below 8.6%.
Collect leases, the rent roll and estoppel certificates.
Rebuild expenses with reassessed taxes, insurance and historic-building maintenance in our rental property analysis.

Questions people ask

Are there apartment buildings in Bodega?

Very few. Most income property is a home with a second unit or a mixed-use historic building.

Can I add a second unit?

Usually, if septic and water allow it. On coastal parcels it is a second dwelling unit needing a coastal permit; inland it is an ADU permitted in most zones.

Can I add a junior ADU?

Inland, yes where the zone allows. In the Coastal Zone, Permit Sonoma says JADUs are not yet provided for.

Is there rent control in Bodega?

No local rent control. AB 1482 applies to covered units, at up to 8.6% from August 1, 2026.

Does SB 9 apply in the village?

Parcels inside the Historic District are generally excluded under state law, and SB 9 applies only in single-family zones.

Is there a city transfer tax?

No. Only the County’s $0.55 per $500 applies.

Sources & notes

Note: We could not confirm from a County text source whether Bodega lies in the Coastal Zone, which district applies to each parcel, or who supplies water. The SB 9 historic-district exclusion summarizes state law, not a County ruling, and the description of local housing types is a general observation. For countywide context, see our Sonoma County multifamily guide and Sonoma County commercial guide.

General information, not legal or tax advice. Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.

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