As California continues to grapple with an acute affordable
housing crisis, all levels of government are looking at ways
to rethink affordable housing financing and also the
regulatory environment which can either help or hinder housing
production. Affordable housing was one of the main topics
during the 2016 legislative session and while some progress was
made on issues like density bonus, accessory dwelling units, and
unlocking the potential for housing on existing properties with
existing uses, larger issues remain unresolved.
For the 2017 Legislative session, CSAC staff anticipates picking
up where we left off on affordable housing. This coming
legislative session will likely feature debate and action on
these issues at least:
Future state General Fund support for affordable housing,
A permanent source for affordable housing outside the general
fund,
Potential general obligation bonds,
Significant changes to the role of the local planning and
entitlement process as envisioned in the Governor proposal on
“by-right” for multifamily affordable housing.
The CSAC Annual Meeting will feature a workshop on affordable
housing and specifically best practices and proactive innovations
at the local level that can help spur housing production across
the state. As a preview to that panel which will include
perspectives from cities, counties and the affordable development
community, the McKinsey Global Institute, who will also be
represented on the panel, released a report earlier this week–
A Tool Kit to Close California’s Housing Gap: 3.5 Million
Homes by 2025 – that tries to tackle this very subject.
According to the study, California has fallen several million
homes behind since the last major housing construction boom in
the 1980s. To match the number of houses per person in New York
or New Jersey, the state would need to build 3.5 million more
homes over the next decade. This chronic underproduction is
having far-reaching economic impacts—with rising home and rental
prices swallowing up $140 billion in economic activity each year
and forcing nearly half of California households to struggle to
buy or rent a home in their community.
The McKinsey Global Institute worked in partnership with the
California Economic Summit network, identifying 15 levers that
could allow California communities to close the affordability gap
and build up to five million new homes. The focus of the growth
is on vacant land, focusing on transit-oriented development,
building out accessory dwelling units, maximizing underutilized
and adjacent land. Many of the levers are locally focused so make
sure to
check out the full report which also offers economic impacts
from these tools and plan to join the Affordable Housing Workshop
on Thursday, December 1 at 10 am.
