Arizona's Housing Crisis: Short-Term Rentals Not Solely to Blame, Report Finds
A recent analysis by the Common Sense Institute has revealed that Arizona's housing affordability crisis is not solely due to the proliferation of short-term rentals (STRs) like Airbnb. The report indicates that many of these rentals may not have been part of the full-time housing market initially. Since 2010, Arizona has seen a near one-to-one shift from vacation homes to STR listings, suggesting that these properties were not originally available for long-term residents. The report highlights that the more significant issue is the collapse in homebuilding following the Great Recession. Between 2003 and 2007, Arizona built approximately 400,000 housing units, but this number dropped to about 211,000 in the following decade. This decline in construction has contributed significantly to the current housing shortage, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which increased demand and drove prices up. 
