{"id":542461,"date":"2026-01-25T19:42:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-25T19:42:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/542461\/"},"modified":"2026-01-25T19:42:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-25T19:42:11","slug":"revised-san-diego-vacation-rental-tax-up-for-review-but-will-changes-matter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/542461\/","title":{"rendered":"Revised San Diego vacation rental tax up for review, but will changes matter?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"a<\/a>A property in Ocean Beach near Dog Beach that residents complain operates solely as a base for short-term vacationers. Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera hosted a news conference in view of the building to tout his short-term vacation rental tax plan. (Photo by Times of San Diego staff)<\/p>\n

Two things generally have proven themselves unpopular in San Diego: new public fees and short-term vacation rentals.<\/p>\n

Those two inclinations will again crash into each other this week as a San Diego City Council committee takes up the proposal to tax certain owners of those rentals thousands of dollars for their operations.<\/p>\n

The cash-strapped city \u2014 Mayor Todd Gloria, after last year\u2019s bruising budget battle, placed the city\u2019s upcoming budget deficit at almost $90 million \u2014 has opted for new and increased fees to bridge gaps, but voters would need to weigh in for the \u201cEmpty Second Homes and Vacation Rental Tax,\u201d as it\u2019s known, to take effect.<\/p>\n

The proposal, first considered by the Rules Committee in October, has been revised<\/a>, with the tax rising to $8,000, and the focus narrowed to a charge per property, not individual rooms. The initial plan was for a $5,000 tax per bedroom per residence marketed not as a full-time home, but as a rental through agencies or online services such as Airbnb.<\/p>\n

The committee, chaired by Council President Joe LaCava, will decide Wednesday<\/a> whether to move the revamped proposal on for review by the full city council. Should the council approve, the plan would be placed on the June primary ballot.<\/p>\n

One vote in favor is crystal clear \u2014 that of Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera<\/a>, who proposed the plan last year.<\/p>\n

His full-court press for the tax last week included no less than four news conferences in which local residents, students, veterans and military and union members outlined why they back the plan, for reasons ranging from housing access and affordability to restoring their neighborhoods.<\/p>\n

Elo-Rivera, despite the deficit, argues that the tax really isn\u2019t about addressing the city\u2019s budget problems, but finding a way to create a deterrent for homeowners who prefer catering to tourists rather than locals or those who let a second home remain vacant most of the year.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we\u2019re trying to do is disincentivize homes from being used as mini-hotels instead of houses, and disincentivize homes from sitting empty instead of being a place where families can grow up,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

In addition to the direct tax of $8,000 per vacation rental or empty home, the plan includes a $4,000 surcharge for corporate, rather than individual, owners. It does not, however, target those who post and rent rooms in a home where they also live.<\/p>\n

Tracy Dezenzo, a member of the Ocean Beach Planning Board, appeared at one of Elo-Rivera\u2019s news conferences, held near Dog Beach, within view of a building in her community that has been completely converted to short-term rentals.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cNeighborhoods,\u201d she said, \u201care not meant to be resorts.\u201d She takes issue with opponents of the proposal who say individual homeowners renting out rooms would be hurt by the tax. She called that \u201cfearmongering\u201d and deflection.<\/p>\n

\u201cOwning multiple homes and renting them out for two or three times more than what a long-term rent would be isn\u2019t being middle class,\u201d she said. \u201cIt isn\u2019t being mom and pop. It\u2019s profiteering, and calling themselves mom and pops is definitely disingenuous.\u201d<\/p>\n

The San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce<\/a> does point to the same people as Elo-Rivera in challenging the proposed tax. The councilman argues that short-term vacation rentals hurt the working class, retirees and veterans, while the chamber has countered that the tax would hurt those same people if they \u201crely on a rental home to help make ends meet.\u201d<\/p>\n

The organization remains opposed to the plan, regardless of the revisions. President and chief executive officer Chris Cate calls it \u201ca policy that ultimately makes San Diego\u2019s affordability challenges worse, not better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis proposal does nothing to realistically address housing costs for San Diegans. It doesn\u2019t create a single new housing unit, and there is no requirement that the money collected be used for housing at all,\u201d he said in a statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Elo-Rivera estimated last year that his proposal would apply to roughly 2% of all housing units in the city and generate from $90 million to upwards of $130 million for the city budget. With the revised plan, that figure has been adjusted down to \u201cup to $90 million,\u201d according to a report released by the councilmember\u2019s office ahead of the committee meeting.<\/p>\n

The city, as of Jan. 16, said that there have been 8,246 licenses issued for short-term residential occupancy<\/a>. The proposal would apply to more than 5,700 of those licenses.<\/p>\n

In the October meeting, LaCava made it clear that he\u2019s focused on budget solutions. \u201cWe need more revenue to provide the services our communities are asking for,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

He noted a series of items he wanted to see cleared up regarding the potential tax.\u00a0They include establishing how much the city receives in transient occupancy taxes from short-term vacation rentals, how much that figure could drop if units are pulled from the market and how likely it would it be for the tax to prompt owners to sell homes they maintain as vacation rentals.<\/p>\n

The city\u2019s Independent Budget Analyst<\/a> is expected to issue a report on the plan ahead of Wednesday\u2019s meeting.<\/p>\n

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