Investment Property Loans in Bakersfield, CA

On June 10, 2026 Bakersfield's council adopted the city's first short-term rental ordinance, 6-1; rentals need a city permit valid one year, renewable only without two or more citations that year.

For investors: Before buying a Bakersfield house for nightly rental, plan on a permit renewal every year and tight guest management, since repeated citations can end the permit. Underwrite a fallback long-term rent in case renewal is refused.

Source: KGET 17 News (published June 11, 2026), Jun 2026

Bakersfield's short-term rental rules cap guests at two per bedroom, require a contact reachable around the clock, ban outdoor pool and spa use at night, and require liability insurance.

For investors: A large Bakersfield home with a pool earns less as a short-term rental than its bedroom count suggests, because occupancy and night-time pool limits cut its appeal to groups. Price the liability policy and a local contact into operating costs.

Source: KGET 17 News (published June 11, 2026), Jun 2026

Bakersfield's transient lodging tax is 12% of room rent paid by guests staying 30 days or less, under Municipal Code Chapter 3.40; stays over 30 consecutive days are exempt, and returns are due monthly.

For investors: Price Bakersfield nightly rates with the 12% on top, and confirm whether the booking platform remits it for you or you file with the City Treasurer yourself. A furnished lease past 30 days to a traveling worker avoids the tax.

Source: City of Bakersfield City Treasurer, Transient Lodging Tax Return form, Oct 2026

City officials estimated about 500 short-term rentals were already operating in Bakersfield before the June 2026 ordinance, even though the prior city code did not allow them.

For investors: Hundreds of existing hosts now need permits, so expect a busy permit queue and competition from operators who already hold guest reviews. A new Bakersfield entrant should compare nightly revenue against a plain annual lease before buying.

Source: KGET 17 News (published June 11, 2026), Jun 2026

Chevron, seventh among Bakersfield employers in 2015 with about 1,860 workers, no longer appears on the city's 2024 top-ten list, which is now led by government, schools and health care.

For investors: Bakersfield's job base has tilted from oil toward public and medical payrolls. When judging tenant risk, lean toward locations near the employers that grew, and stress-test rent on properties whose renter pool depends on oilfield work.

Source: City of Bakersfield, 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (linked from bakersfieldcity.us), Jun 2024

Bakersfield, the Kern County seat about 100 miles north of Los Angeles, covers 151 square miles and had an estimated 419,238 residents on January 1, 2025.

For investors: At 151 square miles, Bakersfield behaves like several rental submarkets rather than one. Compare rent and vacancy by neighborhood and by distance to the main job centers before relying on a citywide average in your rent coverage math.

Source: City of Bakersfield, 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (linked from bakersfieldcity.us), Jan 2025

Bakersfield's ADU guide says accessory units may be rented separately from the main house but not as short-term or vacation rentals under 30 days, and multifamily lots may add up to two detached ADUs.

For investors: An ADU behind a Bakersfield rental house adds a second long-term rent, not a nightly unit, so underwrite it at monthly market rent. Owners of duplexes or small apartment lots can add up to two detached units for more doors on the same land.

Source: City of Bakersfield, ADU Resource Guide, Feb 2024

Bakersfield's largest employers in 2024 were the County of Kern with about 7,559 workers, Kern High School District with 5,406 and Bakersfield City School District with 3,811, per the city's financial report.

For investors: As the county seat, Bakersfield leans on public payrolls that tend to hold through oil and farm cycles. Rentals within easy reach of downtown county offices and the big school districts draw tenants with steady paychecks.

Source: City of Bakersfield, 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (linked from bakersfieldcity.us), Jun 2024

Health systems are Bakersfield's next big payroll: Dignity Health had about 3,520 workers in 2024, Adventist Health Bakersfield 2,745 and Kern Medical 2,437, per the city's financial report.

For investors: Hospital staff work round-the-clock shifts and value short commutes, so rentals near Bakersfield's hospitals can lease to medical workers year round. Three health systems on the top-ten list spread that demand across more than one employer.

Source: City of Bakersfield, 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (linked from bakersfieldcity.us), Jun 2024

The City of Bakersfield provides sewer service to city residents and collects refuse within the city, but its domestic water utility serves only some residents, so other providers deliver water to parts of the city.

For investors: Confirm the water provider for each Bakersfield address before closing, since it sets the deposit, billing and rate history you inherit. Trash and sewer are generally city services, which simplifies turnovers on a portfolio spread across town.

Source: City of Bakersfield, 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (linked from bakersfieldcity.us), Jun 2024

On May 27, 2026 Bakersfield's council approved, 5-2, a multi-year sewer rate increase starting in fiscal 2026-27 to close an operating deficit and fund treatment plant upgrades and expansion.

For investors: Bakersfield collects many sewer fees on the property tax roll, so the increase lands on the owner, not the tenant, unless the lease passes it through. Rerun holding costs on every rental you own in the city for each step of the schedule.

Source: The Bakersfield Californian, May 2026