RECORD VACANCY RATE!
Apartment vacancies just hit a –CENTURY record 6.1 percent—higher than the Great Recession—after thousands of new units flooded the market (about 5,000 in 2024, 5,600 in 2025, and another 4,000 so far this year). Yet average rents have not dropped.
San Diego remains the 10th most expensive rental market in the country, with one-bedroom prices even ticking slightly higher.
Apartment vacancies just hit a –CENTURY record 6.1 percent—higher than the Great Recession—after thousands of new units flooded the market (about 5,000 in 2024, 5,600 in 2025, and another 4,000 so far this year). Yet average rents have not dropped.
San Diego remains the 10th most expensive rental market in the country, with one-bedroom prices even ticking slightly higher.
During COVID, people surged to San Diego, and now are leaving. Growth has stalled for jobs, population, and buying condos.
Landlords are now offering free months of rent just to fill units. The so-called “supply-and-demand” fix is not working. Simply building more housing does not automatically lower costs.
This construction surge was supercharged by state laws that pushed denser development and by pandemic-era conditions. Now the city is still under pressure to plan for more than 100,000 additional units by 2029.
That’s why Our Neighborhood Voices is fighting for a statewide initiative that keeps zoning and planning decisions where they belong—at the local level. Sacramento’s one-size-fits-all mandates ignore community character, infrastructure limits, and real-world results. Local control protects our neighborhoods while still allowing thoughtful growth.
The evidence is clear: more units alone do not deliver affordability.
