Jul 30, 2025 | Housing, Opinion
By Ann Duwe
July 30, 2025
SB 79 is among more than 200 housing bills aimed at remaking California in the image of Manhattan. Grossly mislabeled as the “Abundant & Affordable Homes Near Transit Act,” the bill increases housing density near dedicated bus, train and ferry stops by reaching deep into the neighborhoods around those stops and permitting, by right, five to seven story rental apartment buildings. The bill does little to make this new housing affordable and wreaks havoc with the planning effort made by cities with compliant Housing Elements.
Jul 28, 2025 | Housing, Legislation
by Riley Cooke
July 28, 2025
A contentious state bill to encourage denser housing near public transit has been revised to give local governments more control over where that housing is built in an effort to appease skeptics who are concerned about overrides to local zoning.
Jul 25, 2025 | Housing, Opinion
By Gaeton Lion
July 25, 2025
Everyone believes California does have a housing supply shortage because of its staggering home prices. But, it does not. Its home prices respond to qualitative factors independent of housing supply.
Jul 21, 2025 | Housing
By Jon Lansner
July 21, 2025
Relatively speaking, California is not a hot spot for housing investors.
That’s a conclusion from my trusty spreadsheet’s review of data on investor activity across the nation from BatchData, a small data tracker that digs deeper into property records than many traditional real estate analysts. By this math, 19% of California houses were owned by investors, ranking No. 36 among the states and just below the 20% national norm.
Jun 28, 2025 | Housing, Opinion
By Emily Hoeven, Columnist
June 28, 2025
Most Californians are intimately familiar with stories of cities going to comically absurd lengths to block new housing.
Sausalito tried to argue it could build affordable units on underwater eelgrass. La Cañada Flintridge in Los Angeles County flirted with bankruptcy to fight its first multifamily development in more than a decade. And Woodside attempted to declare itself a mountain lion sanctuary to avoid duplexes. But the affluent city of Menlo Park is bucking the trend. At least it’s trying to.
Jun 21, 2025 | Housing
By Kristina Houck, Patch Staff
Sat, Jun 21, 2025
Moving to the suburbs meant putting down roots and putting down a mortgage, but things have changed, according to a new report. A new study from Point2Homes showed that 203 suburbs across the country’s 20 largest metros now have more renters than homeowners. With more people leasing their homes than owning them in these communities, the line between city and suburb continues to blur. The blurred line is driven by affordability, changing lifestyles and mobility, according to Andra Hopulele, the author of the study.
