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Cathedral City · Building on your lot

Running a business from home in Cathedral City

City rule: a home business needs a permit, may use at most 25% of the main building, and may employ only the resident.

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Key points

  • Home businesses: City rule: a home business needs a permit, may use at most 25% of the main building, and may employ only the resident.

Each rule below links to the section of the Cathedral City Municipal Code it was read from, with the code text one click away (checked October 2026). General information, not legal advice.

What Cathedral City's code says

Cathedral City code What Cathedral City's code adds
Space used
  • No more than 25% of the total area of the whole building.
    Applies: For a home business in the main building.
    § 9.70.070 · code text
    The home occupation shall not occupy more than twenty-five percent of the total area of the entire structure.
Customer visits
  • No more than 1 student at a time.
    Applies: For music lessons.
    § 9.70.020 · code text
    Music instruction provided no more than one student is instructed at one time;
  • No office open to the public.
    Applies: No wholesale or retail sales on site, except mail order sales.
    § 9.70.070 · code text
    There shall be no sales activity, either wholesale or retail, except mail order sales, nor shall there be an office open to the general public.
Employees
  • Only the resident of the home may work in the business on the property.
    § 9.70.070 · code text
    No one other than the resident of the dwelling shall be employed on the premises in the conduct of the home occupation.
Permit
  • A home occupation permit is required.
    § 9.70.090 · code text
    The home occupation permit shall be deemed revoked ten days from the date of mailing of said notice.
Businesses not allowed
  • Automotive repair (body or mechanical), upholstery and painting; barber, beauty, manicuring, masseuse, and similar enterprises; carpentry, cabinet-making and furniture repair; machinery, equipment or appliance repair; professional and medical offices and laboratories; construction offices where there is storage of material and equipment, and the transporting of employees; storage for fee; and any similar use and those uses not listed as a permitted use.
    § 9.70.030 · code text
    To add emphasis to the types of uses that are not permitted as home occupations, the following uses are specifically prohibited:

Who this affects

HomeownersContractorsDesigners

Frequently asked questions

Can I run a business from my home in Cathedral City?

City rule: a home business needs a permit, may use at most 25% of the main building, and may employ only the resident.

General information, not legal advice.

Ask about a specific Cathedral City property

Ask GoCodebook how Cathedral City's running a business from home rules apply to your situation and get an answer that cites the section.

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Cathedral City Municipal Code — full text