Google Engineer Becomes Vigilante Exposing San Diego Short-Term Rental Loophole

A Google engineer has taken on the role of housing watchdog in San Diego, leveraging his technical expertise to expose what he calls a loophole in the city's short-term rental regulations. Jay Goldberg, a 42-year-old Hillcrest resident, spends his off-hours analyzing property records, rental licenses, and online listings to identify buildings he believes are being converted from long-term housing into tourist accommodations.

Goldberg and a group of like-minded individuals have filed over 2,000 reports with San Diego officials concerning suspected short-term rental violations. Their primary concern is a loophole that they claim allows property owners to evict existing tenants through buyouts or no-fault evictions and subsequently obtain licenses for short-term rentals. San Diego's current rules do not automatically prohibit the issuance of a short-term rental license if tenants have been removed from a multi-family building.

This situation, according to Goldberg and other activists, exacerbates the already critical housing shortage in San Diego. They argue that such conversions reduce the availability of long-term housing for residents.

Goldberg founded Nice Neighbors, a group dedicated to advocating for stricter enforcement of short-term rental laws. The group's website tracks licenses and listings, highlighting properties they deem suspicious. Goldberg's personal involvement began after a neighboring townhouse started operating as a full-time vacation rental.

One case highlighted by Goldberg's efforts involved Michael Flore, a former tenant in Pacific Beach. Flore had lived in a two-bedroom apartment for over a decade, paying a low monthly rent. However, after new owners purchased the complex in 2023, tenants were reportedly offered buyouts to vacate.

Goldberg's system flagged the building after multiple short-term rental licenses were issued following its sale. "Jay came out of nowhere," Flore told inewsource. "I was just finally like, ‘Oh, somebody does care about what’s going on.'" However, Flore had already moved out by that time.

The San Diego Housing Federation estimates that the region is short more than 134,500 affordable homes for low-income renters. Data from Zillow indicates that typical monthly rental costs in the city are substantial.

The controversy surrounding short-term rentals intensified after San Diego's ordinance took effect in May 2023. The regulations generally permit one short-term rental license per "host," who is not necessarily the property owner. Previously, NBC 7 reported on property owner Michael Mills, who was associated with 114 short-term rental licenses in Ocean Beach. Tenants at one Mills-owned property stated they received 60-day notices that their leases would not be renewed.

At the time, Councilmember Jennifer Campbell's office acknowledged that Mills had not violated the law but suggested the ordinance might need revisions, as it was not intended for such use.

Airbnb has stated to inewsource that it supports measures to prevent "bad actors" from undermining the intent of San Diego's regulations.

Goldberg has developed an application to help identify high-priority properties and conducts on-site inspections for violations. He claims his work has led to at least a dozen hosts losing their ability to operate short-term rentals. He emphasizes that his activism is not against capitalism or Airbnb itself but aims to address the power imbalance faced by tenants.