September 27, 2023 — By one estimate, California must build 3.5 million housing units by 2025 to end the state’s housing shortage. This shortage has resulted in rising rents and prices, closed access to homeownership for many families, and forced many Californians to leave…
Think Locally, Upzone Globally
Overly restrictive zoning is a major factor contributing to the housing shortage and affordability crisis. In a new paper, Jack Y Favilukis and Jaehee Song present a new theory to explain why some municipalities have more restrictive zoning than others:…
Next Experiment in the Laboratories of Democracy: Housing Progress
With the end of the California legislative session on September 14, several major housing bills were approved by the Legislature and sent to Governor Newsom’s desk. While attention has been focused on California, a number of other states have passed…
Statement on Passage of SB 684
SACRAMENTO – Today, California YIMBY, California Community Builders, LISC San Diego, The Central Valley Urban Institute, UnidosUS, Salvadoran American Leadership and Educational Fund, California Community Economic Development Association, and Richmond Neighborhood Housing Services released the following statement in response to…
California YIMBY Statement on Legislature Passage of AB 1633
Bill Strengthens Environmental Protections, Limits CEQA Abuse “Urban infill housing is critical for the environment and climate change” SACRAMENTO – Today, California YIMBY released the following statement about the passage of AB 1633 in the state legislature: “Building multi-family housing…
California YIMBY Statement on Passage of SB 423
Legislature Approves Extension and Expansion of SB 35 “The most powerful affordable housing law in recent history” SACRAMENTO – Today, the California state legislature voted to approve SB 423, landmark housing legislation that extends and expands the state’s most successful…
Your Unhoused Neighbors: They’re Not Who You Think They Are
The Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative at the University of California, San Francisco recently released the findings of a large, mixed-methods study that aimed to understand the scope of homelessness in California and experiences of the unhoused population. The California…
Can empty office towers become housing? Survey says … Some of them
In response to the rise in remote work since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many companies have abandoned office space they previously occupied. Much ink has been spilled on the topic of empty office buildings in downtowns and office…
The State of Housing 2023: More Multifamily Housing, But the Shortage Persists
The Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University recently released its annual “State of the Nation’s Housing” report. The report provides a detailed summary of trends in the United States’ housing and rental markets. Construction of multifamily housing has…
A Tale of Two Towns: How Exclusionary Zoning Promotes Segregation
In another example of how zoning and housing might explain everything, exclusionary zoning policies can be linked to disparities in educational outcomes. A new report from the Century Foundation compares two towns in Westchester County, New York to examine how…