LA used to build duplexes and fourplexes everywhere—half its homes in the 1920s were exactly that. Then zoning made it illegal. Legalizing it again on single-family blocks could add 13,600 homes a year for a third of the price of new mansions, plus $9 billion in local revenue.

A 790-home tower in the Marina with 86 affordable homes faces a late challenge over how state law defines "urban" land near parks. Planners found it legal twice. If it fails, hundreds of families lose the chance at living in a well-resourced neighborhood. www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/m...

The Squamish Nation is building 6,000 homes in 11 towers on 10 acres of land in Vancouver, exempt from city zoning — first tenants moved in May. The project shows what's possible without neighbor veto power. Vancouver's own rules would have blocked most of it. www.nytimes.com/2026/06/15/o...

Huntington Beach resisted state housing mandates for years, lost to the AG in state and federal court, and racked up $170K in fines, while many residents were displaced. Last month, it finally voted 5-2 to comply. www.latimes.com/socal/daily-...

18 months after the LA wildfires, only 44 of 490 ED1-approved projects had broken ground. Permitting is faster, but construction costs 40%+ above pre-pandemic levels; tight financing and wage markup requirements keep affordable housing economics broken. www.multihousingnews.com/sizing-up-la...

SF adopted a stricter ceiling-height minimum (7'6") than state law requires (7'), preventing a Cole Valley homeowner from legalizing two basement units for 20+ years. A supervisor is now advancing legislation to align SF's rules with state code. www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

Portland's own commissioned study found that tightening inclusionary zoning from 10% to 25% of homes cut projects by 55% and completed homes from 1,436 to 167. More affordable homes were promised on paper; far fewer were actually built. mainepolicy.substack.com/p/portland-s...

Anthropic and OpenAI IPOs will inject massive wealth into SF. The @sfchronicle editorial board argues the city needs to build housing at all price points now — or repeat the mistakes of past tech booms that priced out many residents. www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/edit...

A 130-home affordable housing project in Livermore broke ground this year, 23 years after the site was first designated for housing. Lawsuits from a local opponent cost the developer $71M in tax credits and drove costs from $99M to $112M. www.sfchronicle.com/projects/202...

Encinitas just raised development impact fees 200-500% — an average home now triggers $47,827 in fees, up from $15,843. The result: higher costs passed to new residents. CA averages $29K/unit in impact fees vs. under $1K in Texas. voiceofsandiego.org/2026/05/28/m...

Palo Alto: 6 housing filings near Caltrain in 10 days, thanks to SB 79, a new state law that allows more homes near transit.

2025 UCLA/RAND study: LA's Measure ULA transfer tax cut large multifamily permits by 1,910 homes annually and blocks 100+ affordable units per year — more than the ~70 it funds. Land sales for apartments dropped 46% after it took effect. cayimby.org/blog/if-you-...

This proposed Palo Alto apartment project got mixed reviews from the council last year, who wanted changes. It just came back under SB 79, which lets housing near transit move forward with less subjective review. Now it's 39 homes instead of 37, with affordable homes spread across four floors.

LA lost 400K residents since 2016 while rents nearly doubled. Why? Shrinking household sizes mean more homes needed for fewer people, decades of underbuilding left a structural deficit, and departing lower-income renters are replaced by wealthier ones. www.latimes.com/california/s...

SB 79 allows housing near transit. That's how a motel by Palo Alto's Caltrain stop could become 76 homes in one of the priciest cities in the country. It's the first project here, proving the law works, even as the city debates what comes next. www.paloaltoonline.com/news/2026/07...

Each month of permitting delay adds ~1% to building costs. Preapproved 'pattern book' plans cut weeks-to-months off that timeline and up to $10K in upfront design costs. 40+ communities now offer them. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/22/y...

LA left its apartment tax in place, keeping construction costs high. Fewer apartments get built as a result. The same tax already slowed housing citywide and cut $452M from schools and parks funding. laist.com/news/housing...

SB 79 now lets LA build apartments near transit, effectively ending single-family zoning near frequent Metro lines—@mateosfo.bsky.social says it legalizes up to a million homes statewide over the next decade. www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/y...

SB 79 took effect statewide, letting builders add apartments near transit stops without local veto, but LA delayed full compliance until 2030, opting for its own shorter, 4-story density plan instead. lamaterial.com/p/sb79-housi...

Strongtowns Oceanside argues Oceanside voted to exempt nearly all its transit-adjacent sites from SB 79, cutting one station's housing capacity from 25,000 units to zero. Meanwhile, the city's affordable housing filings were already projected to fall from 412 to under 50 this year.

Thank you to Sacramento Councilmember Pluckebaum for testifying in support of @matthaneysf.bsky.social AB 2074!

[Bill Alert]: SB 677 has passed out of Asm Local Gov. SB 677 will protect already-approved housing projects from common city delay tactics over the creation of subdivisions and approval of federal financing for affordable housing. cayimby.org/legislation/...

Today, California ends decades-long bans on apartments near our most frequent train and bus stops, thanks to SB 79. Some cities will move fast. Others will take more time. Change won't happen everywhere at once. But it has begun, and it will not stop here.

Measure ULA missed its revenue goal by two-thirds: a high tax rate convinced wealthy sellers to hold onto their property rather than sell. The tax also applies when developers buy and sell land to build apartments, and a new study says construction fell 30% because of it.

Solana Beach Station qualifies for more housing under SB 79, according to a BuildSd analysis, but SANDAG left it off its draft map. If SANDAG's decision stands, fewer homes will be built near transit. cal.streetsblog.org/2026/06/25/i...

New apartments incur one-time local fees that add 6-14% to construction costs per home. RAND modeled cutting fees across SF, LA, San Diego, and Palo Alto. In LA alone, a 25% cut unlocks thousands more apartments. SD and SF see smaller, real gains too. 1/3

A wave of Gen Z and millennial candidates is running on housing affordability across party lines. Their core argument is that rules like zoning restrictions created the shortage, and that building more housing is the only way out. www.nytimes.com/2026/06/11/u...

Seniors in dense, transit-rich cities get out more, drive less, and socialize more than those in car-dependent suburbs. In California, 96% of residential land is zoned for single-family homes, leaving aging residents few options to downsize without leaving their communities.

2025 research finds Measure ULA cut apartment and commercial property sales by 30-50%, costing schools and local governments $25M annually in lost property tax reassessments, while making housing developers unable to compete with non-housing buyers for land. cayimby.org/blog/how-las...

Under 40% of CA homes lost to wildfires 2017–2020 have been rebuilt, insurance gaps are part of why. Premiums are now a top cost driver for housing. The fix is premiums reflect real risk so insurance stays available & new housing gets built in safer places. www.governing.com/urban/an-obs...