Pebble Beach golf fans pay for ‘priceless’ vacation rentals

The CSUMB shuttle parking lot for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am is one spot where busloads of people are making their way to and from Pebble Beach, some going back home and others back to their vacation rentals.

“Lots of vacation rentals are full this week,” said Jan Leasure with Monterey Rentals.

Leasure showed NewsChannel 5 just how many vacation homes get rented out during the Pro-Am. She said the high demand for vacation homes definitely boosts the nightly rental rate. A home that would normally go for $249 a night is now priced at $375 a night.

Leasure said some diehard golf fans book their vacation homes on the Central Coast a full year in advance.

“But some people wait for the very last minute, some people just made their reservations in the last couple of days,” Leasure said.

Leasure said some of the listings are still available for the Monterey/Pacific Grove area. She said prices can go from hundreds of dollars to thousands of dollars, depending on what the renter wants.

“We have everything from a small apartment that would rent for maybe about $159 a night all the way up to a large luxury home that will rent for several thousand dollars,” Leasure said.

During the Pro-Am, event rental prices are estimated to be 150 percent of the regular rate — a price many golf fans are willing to pay to enjoy a golf experience that some would call priceless. Leasure said about 70 percent of the rental customers come back the following year.