By RHEA-FRANCES TETLEY
Staff Writer
The short answer is no – not according to the results of the study done by consultants hired by the county to study the effects of short-term rentals on the local housing market.
The consultants – Granicus and PlaceWorks – released the results of their study and conducted a Zoom meeting to review them; several dozen people attended that meeting.
The conclusion reached after numerous community meetings and data research was: “The County could not find clear and empirical data that indicates that short-term rentals (STRs) have a substantial impact on the availability of long-term rental housing options in the unincorporated mountain and East Desert communities. Despite an exhaustive review of data sources, including direct communication with property managers, schools and service providers, the study could not clearly identify data or trends that pointed to STRs displacing long-term renters.”
During the meeting, the consultants said that existing residents were not being replaced by STR activity, but by buyers and tenants willing to pay higher sales prices and rents.
They compared data from 2010 with the new data and said that it was the COVID pandemic that made the pre-existing shortage of housing and lack of new home construction into a problem. Because the pandemic increased opportunities for remote work, it encouraged those in the housing market to want to move out of the cities and to look at and buy into the unincorporated mountain and East Desert communities. This new demand for housing created “a surge of housing demand into areas with little ability to quickly build new housing.”
They concluded that, in terms of occupancy of full-time residents, the occupancy level is relatively the same in 2010 and 2021. “In Lake Arrowhead, the percentage of vacation/second homes is slightly lower in 2021 (-5%) compared to 2010 and the percentage of renter-occupied units is slightly up (+3%), indicating that a portion of vacation/second homes were converted into year-round renter-occupied units. In Crestline, the percentage of vacation/second homes is much lower in 2021 (-9%) compared to 2010 and the percentage of owner-occupied units is up (+10%), indicating that a portion of vacation/second homes were converted into year-round owner-occupied units.”
The final conclusions reached were: Existing residents are likely not being replaced by STR activity, but by buyers and tenants willing to pay higher sales prices and rents. Retirees and remote workers competed in a housing market where the rate of new construction was at its lowest in nearly 20 years. The number of STRs grew in response to the pandemic and the STR market is now showing a downward trend.
With this data and information, the report will be given to the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors next month with other comments which they may gather between now and then. Residents may submit comments on the county’s short-term rental website.
Many of the comments that had been pre-submitted to the committee for the meeting were from short-term rental owners who were commenting on the tightening up on the rules and regulations and increased fees under which they must operate. The report stated that most STR owners are only making $5,000 a year profit and the number of days that a unit must be rented to break even is not being reached by most owners. They also stated some of the rules the state has now passed for the protection of rights of longer-term renters encouraged some property owners to switch to short-term rentals as the property owners’ rights were more protected. Other comments were complaints on the lack of enforcement of the rules for the STRs by the county.
The final conclusion was it was the COVID pandemic that encouraged people to move into the rural areas from the cities. The lack of recent housing growth in those areas is what tightened the housing markets and raised prices, rather than the STR rental market.
The new computer platforms made the ability to rent cabins to strangers more efficient and impersonal, but that was not the reason for the rise in prices nor did it displace homeowners from their homes in the mountain areas.
The entire report is available on the county’s short-term rental website: https://str.sbcounty.gov/short-term-rental-study-virtual-meeting/.
The Lake Gregory Yacht Club is looking for a new home. Their clubhouse collapsed in March and is unrepairable and uninsured. If anyone knows of an available building please contact the commander in charge of the yacht club. They are looking to spend under 500.00 per month. If you drive by the former clubhouse across from the Boy’s Club you will see their sign and the situation as it stands today. Any help or donation will be appreciated.
Mr Chisler there must be an empty building that can accommodate the seniors from the yacht club. The holidays are here and we need to be kind to all even the Lake Gregory Yacht Club. The collapsed building still is untouched and waiting for winter. Maybe someday these elderly boaters will have their mess cleaned up.