ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – In one of Northeast Florida’s most visited destinations, some residents say the rise of short-term rentals is reshaping neighborhoods and pricing out the people who live and work there.
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In St. Augustine, blocks in the historic district are increasingly dominated by vacation rentals, according to locals who say it’s becoming harder to find full-time neighbors.
“That’s an Airbnb…that’s an Airbnb,” resident Mike Warren said while walking through his neighborhood. “A lot of this block is just Airbnbs. You don’t know your neighbors.”
Warren says the trend has accelerated over the past several years, as investors purchased homes to convert into short-term rentals, driving up home prices and limiting housing supply for residents.
“It was increasing [the cost of living],” he said. “Everybody thought they could buy a house and just make a profit out of it.”
Some homeowners have placed signs in their yards to raise awareness, calling for limits on short-term rentals and more protections for local housing.
“It’s an issue,” Warren said.
Business leaders say the impact is now being felt beyond neighborhoods, affecting the local workforce and economy.
“The chamber represents business, and we’re hearing from our business owners that their employees are struggling to find housing,” said Scott Maynard with the St. Johns County Chamber of Commerce.
Across St. Johns County, essential workers like teachers, nurses, law enforcement officers and service industry employees are increasingly unable to afford to live where they work.
One worker shared with the chamber that they hold two jobs but still can’t find housing locally, forcing many to move to neighboring counties and commute.
Maynard said that the daily commute is contributing to another growing issue: traffic.
“About 42,000 people a day are coming from outside of our county into our county to work,” he said. “If they could afford to live here, that would be less traffic on the road.”
In response, the chamber has launched the Attainable Housing Coalition, aimed at pushing policy changes to expand housing options within reach for working families.
Leaders say solving the crisis will require a combination of strategies — including building housing closer to jobs, long-term planning for growth, and changes to zoning and development policies.
“This is not a one-solution problem,” Maynard said. “It takes government agencies, public and private sector investment, and planning.”
Even then, affordability remains relative in a high-cost market. With average home prices topping $550,000 in the county, officials say so-called “attainable” housing may still fall in the $300,000 to $400,000 range.
As local leaders weigh growth and tourism against livability, the question remains of how to preserve what draws people to St. Augustine without pushing out the people who call it home.