Status:
Faced with a referendum seeking to repeal San Diego’s new restrictions on short-term rentals, the City Council did that repeal itself Monday, but left open the question of how the city will regulate home sharing in the future. The council had only two choices before it: repeal the regulations it adopted in August or put the question before voters. The council vote to repeal the short-term rental legislation was 8 to 1, with Councilwoman Lorie Zapf dissenting. Zapf had supported taking the matter to voters.
On July 16, 2018, the San Diego City Council voted 6-3 to enact strict short-term rental regulations – approving Mayor Faulconer’s proposal with two amendments. The Council banned vacation rentals in secondary homes, limiting short-term rentals to one’s primary residence only, and decided not to exempt Mission Beach from the citywide regulations. The remaining restrictions from the Mayor’s plan were passed.
As of June 14, 2018, San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer has proposed a plan which he says, “establishes clear rules of the road for short term rentals and protects neighborhood quality of life through increased oversight and enforcement.” An annual license (with a fee of $949) would be required for whole home (a maximum of two) and home shares over five bedrooms. Home sharing under five bedrooms is unlimited and does not require a license but does require registration. The STR of a dwelling unit with five or more bedrooms requires a license and a Neighborhood Use Permit for home share and whole home. Among other things, the proposal also requires TOT and other fees, a three night minimum and a 180 day cap. Specific ordinance language has not yet been released, but the mayor’s office has set July 16, 2018 as the date for a full City Council hearing. The licensing regulation, which would not become effective until January 2020, must receive approval from the California Coastal Commission as well.
On Monday, August 21, 2017, San Diego City Councilmember Barbara Bry released a proposal that would sharply curb short-term rentals of private residences. The city planning department is also drafting alternative measures based on three options it released earlier this year, which at the time ranged from the most permissive to one that would effectively ban such rentals. The city is hoping to hear the matter October 23, 2017. It will mark the sixth hearing at City Hall in two years to consider the issue of short-term rentals. Under Bry’s suggested regulations, homeowners would be allowed to rent out only their primary residences on a short-term basis but for no more than 90 days a year.
On September 20, 2017, four San Diego City Councilmembers released a proposal that would largely permit most home sharing activities to continue, although with some restrictions. The proposal, authored by Councilmen Chris Ward, Scott Sherman, Mark Kersey and David Alvarez, differs sharply from a proposed ordinance releasedby Councilwoman Barbara Bry that would allow homeowners to rent out only their primary residences — but not investment properties — on a short-term basis for no more than 90 days a year. The latest proposal would allow owners to rent out up to three properties on a short-term basis, a three-night minimum stay would be required in San Diego’s coastal areas as well as in neighborhoods that have been designated as a historic district. A series of escalating fines as high as $5,000 would be assessed for noise and nuisance violations, and in a move to address the argument that short-term rentals are depleting the stock of long-term housing, the council members are suggesting a $5 nightly rental fee that would be deposited into a new affordable housing fund.
On October 18, 2017, a legal memo issued by City Attorney Mara Elliott’s office inferred that short-term rental proposals under consideration were illegal. At issue were two proposals on how to deal with short-term rentals, one of which already had support from four Council members. Elliott’s memo caused the Council members to abruptly cancel a hearing that was supposed to occur.
Proposals:
06/26/2018: Resolution Approving an Affordable Housing Impact Fee for STRO (City of San Diego)
06/26/2018: Resolution Approving Establishment of Short Term Rental Occupancy License Fee (City of San Diego)
06/14/2018: Short Term Residential Occupancy Fact Sheet (City of San Diego)
06/14/2018: Ordinance Amending the Municipal Code Regarding Short Term Residential Occupancy (City of San Diego)
09/20/2017: Proposed Short Term Rental Policies and Strategies (San Diego City Councilmembers Ward, Kersey, Sherman, Alvarez)
08/21/2017: Draft Short Term Occupancy and Home Sharing Use Proposal (San Diego City Councilmember Barbara Bry)
10/31/2016: Short-Term Vacation Rental and Home-Sharing Draft Ordinance (San Diego City Councilmember Chris Cate)
Reports:
10/01/2017: Economic Impact Report of SD Short-Term Rentals (City of San Diego)
03/15/2017: Short-Term Vacation Rentals Legal Memo (San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott)
03/03/2017: Planning Department Staff Report (City of San Diego)
12/21/2015: Office of The City Attorney City of San Diego – Short Term Vacation Rentals Memorandum (City of San Diego)
11/23/2015: Short Term Vacation Rental and Home Sharing Ordinance: Land Development Code/Local Coastal Program Amendment (City of San Diego)
08/12/2015: Prospective San Diego Short Term Vacation Rental/Home Sharing Regulations (City of San Diego)
04/22/2015: Development Services Department Land Development Code Work Program – Regulation of Short Term Vacation Rentals (City of San Diego)
04/17/2015: Office of the Independent Budget Analyst Report – Comparative Information on Short-Term Rentals (City of San Diego)
News:
10/22/2018: San Diego rescinds tough Airbnb regulations, reopening debate on how to rein in short-term rentals (Los Angeles Times)
08/30/2018: San Diego Trader Joe’s Files Suit Against Aggressive Pro-Airbnb Signature Gatherings (OB Rag)
07/16/2018: San Diego council votes to limit Airbnb rentals to primary residence only (San Diego News Tribune)
06/14/2018: Mayor proposes Airbnb regs allowing up to two rentals per host, with no limits in Mission Beach (San Diego News Tribune)
11/01/2017: San Diego hearing on Airbnb rental rules set for December (San Diego Union Tribune)
10/27/2017: City Council’s Airbnb Vote Stumbles After Memo (Voice of San Diego)
10/19/2017: City Council hearing on Airbnb regulations abruptly canceled (San Diego Union Tribune)
10/18/2017: City attorney memo dampens prospects for consensus on short-term rental rules (San Diego Union Tribune)
10/09/2017: Short-Term Rentals Could Worsen San Diego Housing Crisis (KPBS)
10/05/2017: Short-term rental debates measure a city’s housing values (San Diego Union Tribune)
09/20/2017: Airbnb debate heats up with new proposal permitting short-term rentals (San Diego Union Tribune)
08/30/2017: Short-Term Rental Proposal Limits Homeowners’ Ability to Use Their Biggest Asset (Opinion) (Voice of San Diego)
08/29/2017: Fact Check: How Strictly Does Bry’s Plan Limit Short-Term Vacation Rentals? (Voice of San Diego)
08/24/2017: Downtown San Diego Resident Concerned About AirBnB Listings in Building (NBC San Diego)
08/21/2017: Proposal would curb short-term rentals in San Diego (San Diego Union Tribune)
07/26/2017: Short-term vacation rental policy needed ASAP in San Diego (San Diego Union Tribune)
07/17/2017: Who is winning during Comic-Con: Airbnb or hotels? (San Diego Union Tribune)
06/22/2017: Short-Term Rentals May Impact Housing Affordability: Group (NBC San Diego)
04/28/2017: Short-term rental hosts beware: city going after delinquent lodging taxes (San Diego Union Tribune)
03/31/2017: Short-term vacation rental complaint moves forward (San Diego Union Tribune)
03/29/2017: No Airbnb Enforcement Crackdown – Yet (Voice of San Diego)
03/24/2017: Council members can’t reach consensus on regulating short term rentals (San Diego Union Tribune)
03/23/2017: Airbnb, VRBO make case for not banning vacation rentals (San Diego Union Tribune)
03/16/2017: Short-term rentals not allowed in San Diego, city attorney says (San Diego Union Tribune)
03/13/2017: The hottest hotel in town is an apartment building (San Diego Union Tribune)
03/01/2017: Income from San Diego Airbnb hosts soars 74 percent (San Diego Union Tribune)
01/17/2017: Airbnb Says It Generated $7M In Tax Revenue For San Diego (KPBS)
10/31/2016: Council rejects proposed Airbnb ban (San Diego Union Tribune)
10/31/2016: Is Sherri Lightner Really Proposing a Ban on Airbnb? (Voice of San Diego)
10/27/2016: Renting an Airbnb home in San Diego could get complicated (Los Angeles Times)
10/26/2016: San Diego to consider sweeping Airbnb ban (San Diego Union Tribune)
08/17/2016: Airbnb opponents demand action by city (San Diego Union Tribune)
08/02/2016: Small hotels, Airbnb hosts exempted from tourism levy (San Diego Union Tribune)
06/10/2016: Airbnb: Opportunity or nuisance? (San Diego Union Tribune)
06/10/2016: Is Airbnb making your rent go up? (San Diego Union Tribune)
12/29/2015: What’s Next for Airbnb in San Diego (Voice of San Diego)
12/28/2015: The Next Chapter in the Fight Over Vacation Rentals (Voice of San Diego)
12/03/2015: Decision on short-term rentals delayed (San Diego Union Tribune)
10/08/2015: Short-term rentals pay $16.4M in hotel and sales taxes (San Diego Union Tribune)
09/23/2015: Heated debates over short-term vacation rentals continue (Fox 5 San Diego)
09/21/2015: Debate on short-term rentals heats up (San Diego Union Tribune)
08/20/2015: Airbnb partners with multifamily owners for home sharing (San Diego Daily Transcript)
08/12/2015: City Clears a Path for Airbnb (Voice of San Diego)
05/30/2015: City to Work on Rules for Rentals (San Diego Union Tribune)
05/29/2015: Stricter rules coming for short-term vacation rentals (San Diego Community Newspaper Group)
03/08/2015: Airbnb spawns vacation rental confusion (San Diego Union Tribune)
02/11/2015: Why Your Short-Term Airbnb Rental Is a Problem (Voice of San Diego)
02/10/2015: San Diego Airbnb in Crosshairs of Enforcers (NBC 7 San Diego)
02/09/2015: San Diego’s Cracking Down on Airbnb Hosts (Voice of San Diego)