From Newsgroup: alt.home.repair

Thousands of Bay Area residents trading in their house keys for car keys
u and unscrupulous ovanlordso are taking advantage.

The concentration of Californians living in RVs has spiked, according to
a CNBC report, and even full-time workers have joined the growing
cohort.

New demand has led to vehicles being shelled out as unregulated rental properties, much to the concern of local officials.

Residents have plenty of reasons to opt for turning their vehicles into makeshift homes. A recent report on the stateAs housing crisis revealed
that a whopping 30.4% of Golden State listings were priced at more than
$1 million. Untenable costs have led to an ongoing population decline.

For those without any other housing options, the stateAs number of
emergency shelter beds is woefully inadequate to meet demand, CNBC
reported.

Despite Gov. Gavin Newsom boasting a 9% decline in homelessness in
January, California residents and local businesses have reported feeling
oheld hostageo by rampant tent and vehicle encampments in their
communities.

Federal housing data suggests the state hosts a quarter of the countryAs homeless population.

In response to the tight housing market, an exploitative oshadow rental market,o has arrived in the Bay Area, CNBC reported. Locals taking
advantage of the crisis have turned a profit as ovanlords,o renting out
their shoddy, old RVs for hundreds of dollars.

These unofficial rentals are not backed by written leases or tenant
protection laws, leaving residents with few choices in a vulnerable
spot.

One such renter told CNBC they and a friend have spent $500 per month to
rent a publicly parked RV in San Francisco for the past year. The
manager of a legal RV park said their site has evolved from serving
tourists to long-term residents.

San Francisco has ramped up parking enforcement in response to the off-the-books market, and legislation to ban the practice in San Jose is
in the works.

https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/02/debris-belongings-s urround-rv-encampment-119109072.jpg?resize=720,480&quality=75&strip=all

San Jose has also made headway with a creative alternative to the shadow market, called a osafe parking site.o The cityAs two grant-funded sites
offer a total of 128 parking spots that are temporary and rent-free.

The newest location, an 86-spot site located between industrial plants,
offers showers, laundry facilities and an office of case workers to
residents. The waitlist is full.

The number of homeless Santa Clara County residents sleeping in cars
more than doubled since the pandemic, CNBC reported, citing county data.
The figure rose from 18% in 2019 up to 37% in 2025. The area is home to
Silicon Valley and eight of the countryAs 50 priciest ZIP codes.

A similar safe site project in San Fransisco was previously shuttered.
City officials there suggested to CNBC that official RV parks should be reconsidered as a regional housing strategy.

https://nypost.com/2026/02/20/real-estate/calfornians-are-increasingly-li ving-in-rvs-as-costs-soar/
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