Editor,
Sonoma Valley suffers from a misallocation of the housing we already have. Our Valley has hundreds of homes that sit empty most of the year. At the same time, a significant share of long‑term rentals have been converted into vacation rentals, removing them from the local workforce housing pool.
Meanwhile, rents have risen much faster than wages. I was a real estate agent for 14 years and worked with an investor whose goal was to raise rents 3 percent every year, year-in-and-year-out because, “as you know the banks aren’t paying much interest.” Long‑time residents are being priced out because the housing that does exist is increasingly too expensive.
Before we approve more development that strains our limited water supply, infrastructure, and emergency services, we should focus on policies that make better use of the homes already standing.
- Rent Control would help residents stay rooted in their communities.
- Tax on Second Homes would encourage owners to return underused properties to the long‑term market, increasing supply without building a single new unit.
- Reducing or Eliminating Vacation Rentals would immediately free up housing for the people who keep this Valley running every day.
Cities across California – from San Francisco to West Hollywood – have adopted versions of these policies because they work. They target the actual sources of housing distortion rather than relying on the hope that more market‑rate construction will magically produce affordability.
— Karla Noyes, Sonoma
While I agree with most of this here are some numbers. In Sonoma County we have about 10 times the number of homes considered vacant homes than we do vacation rentals. And these are not second homes, they are classified as just “vacant”. Here in my Springs neighborhood we have about 10 or 12 of them. I have seen people at them maybe once or twice a year or never for most. These are not luxury homes. Vacation rentals are capped and most are in exclusion zones, so when they sell they can never be vacation rentals ever again. (Disclosure, I know because I have owned one for 14 years, the licensee does not go with the property). As far as second homes, taxing has worked in other places, and most likely should be in place here too. Also the number of second homes also exceeds the total number of vacation rental homes by about the same ratio.
A empty buildings tax would also encourage the return of commercial properties to full time use. (General’s Daughter, Ramekins/7 Branches,the IT building, et al), bringing in taxes and supporting local trades and businesses. Currently, places like those mentioned above are only occasionally used for events, where once they supported a full time staff.
This business model is harmful to the local economy, leaving holes in a once-rich fabric that nor only supported many workers but reinforced local bonds. The food culture that brought world-class chefs to the Valley has been replaced by name-droppy party culture and the beige blandness that currently passes for taste.