Latest News
NOTE: The opinions expressed in the news items cited here do not necessarily represent the opinion of Catalysts for Local Control. We try to present a balanced picture of the news on the subject of housing and legislation.
Costly local ballot measures come under fire
June 11, 2024
SCC Libertarians oppose what they perceive as wasteful regional housing bond and Sunnyvale transfer tax. From their formal statement, below.
At their April 27 central committee meeting, the Libertarian Party of Santa Clara County (LPSCC) members adopted resolutions against two costly ballot measures likely to appear on local ballots this November.
No longer the American dream’: Grant Cardone says people under 30 ‘should not even consider’ buying a home
By Jing Pan
June 10, 2024
Buying a house has long been considered an essential part of the American dream, as homeownership can be a symbol of prosperity, stability and success. However, real estate mogul Grant Cardone argues that this notion no longer holds true.
In fact, for young Americans, Cardone believes that the idea of home ownership simply shouldn’t cross their minds right now.
Real Estate Investors Are Wiped Out in Bets Fueled by Wall Street Loans
By Prashant Gopal, Patrick Clark, and Scott Carpenter
June 7, 2024
US apartments were supposed to be an ironclad investment, with potential for double-digit returns as the housing shortage propels rents ever higher. Instead, a blowout in multifamily building loan deals have left some retail investors in a world of trouble. The unravelling echoes the subprime mortgage boom that led to the 2008 financial crisis: A lending model built on packaging seemingly safe loans collapses under the weight of spiking interest rates and tanking values.
Two big stories today that together reveal a broader landscape.
By Heather Cox Richardson
June 7, 2024
These news items illustrate a larger story about the United States in this moment.
The Biden administration has quite deliberately overturned the supply-side economics that came into ascendancy in 1981 when President Ronald Reagan took office and that remained dominant until 2021, when Biden entered the White House.
Children are scarce in this Bay Area city. Here’s why that matters
By Christian Leonard, Data Reporter June 2, 2024
Sausalito isn’t getting any younger.
Roughly 9% of the city’s residents were under age 18 in 2020, according to decennial census data. That makes Sausalito one of the handful of communities in California with at least 5,000 people where less than 1 in 10 residents is a child.
Compare that with Marin City, Sausalito’s unincorporated neighbor, where roughly 21% of residents were younger than 18 in 2020. The two communities share a school district, which recently voted to largely consolidate its two campuses into a new complex in Sausalito.
First look: Silicon Valley’s tallest building proposed at former Sunset Magazine HQ
By Roland Li, Business Reporter,
May 31, 2024
The former Menlo Park headquarters of Sunset Magazine could be replaced by a four-building project that rises to 431 feet, potentially becoming Silicon Valley’s tallest building.
Developer N17 formally submitted an application for the project at 80 Willow Road, branded as Willow Park, on May 24. It includes 1.7 million square feet of apartments, offices, retail and restaurant space, a hotel, Montessori school and public parks, in one of the most ambitious projects that the city has seen.
Affordable Housing General Obligation Bond in an Amount Not to Exceed $20 Billion
By Greg Dieguez
May 22,2024
There is much to question about a Housing Bond which will cost $48B in total debt service, yet
yield only $16B in proceeds for housing. At an average of $178K per unit, what will be built are
not Homes, but Corporate Rental Apartments, owned by wealthy investors who can benefit from
the 9% investment tax credit, and depreciation writeoff. And this Bond would continue a trend to institutional ownership of housing, not unlike the Mining and Mill towns of the 19th century.
Huntington Beach Loses Housing Mandate Lawsuit Against California
BY NOAH BIESIADA AND HOSAM ELATTAR
May 15, 2024 Updated May 16, 2024
Huntington Beach violated the state’s housing laws by refusing to move forward with a state-mandated housing plan, according to a new ruling from a San Diego Superior Court judge issued on Wednesday evening.
It’s the first definitive ruling after over a year of litigation – in which city officials said the state’s housing mandates don’t apply because they’re a charter city.
Ex-examining ‘affordable’ housing
By Ann Duwe
May 14, 2024
What is clear is that many of the 150 state housing laws enacted since 2017, together with the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) system administered by the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), will not produce a large supply of housing for Bay Area residents with annual incomes below approximately $100,000.