Re “Vacation rentals are akin to a demolition” (Dec. 11): I rented a two-bedroom apartment in Ocean Beach in the late 1970s and early 1980s for $250 a month. It was one block from the beach. I had a roommate. I could afford it on a part-time waitress job while going to school.
Young people today can’t afford this anymore. Every vacation rental takes away another long-term rental and drives up the rents. My daughters can’t afford to buy a house in the neighborhood they grew up in, which now has several short-term rentals as well. Getting rid of these would certainly help the housing shortage and maybe we wouldn’t need so many high-rise apartments. Long-term renters and homeowners make better neighbors as well. The idea that short-term rental income helps the community is laughable.
— Angela Shaw, Point Loma