{"id":515107,"date":"2026-03-10T13:55:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T13:55:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/515107\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T13:55:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T13:55:11","slug":"report-california-needs-1-million-more-affordable-homes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/515107\/","title":{"rendered":"Report: California needs 1 million more affordable homes"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ConstructionConstruction workers building an apartment complex site for an affordable housing project in Bakersfield on May 29, 2024. Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters\/CatchLight Local<\/p>\n

I\u2019m CalMatters reporter Marisa Kendall, and I\u2019m filling in for Lynn today.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s common knowledge that California has a massive shortage of affordable homes, which contributes to high rates of housing instability and homelessness. But just how many more low-income homes do we need?<\/p>\n

Close to 1 million, according to a new report<\/a> by the National Low Income Housing Coalition. California has just 25 available and affordable rental homes for every 100 households that are deemed \u201cextremely low income\u201d (meaning they make 30% or less of the area\u2019s median income).<\/p>\n

No state in the country has enough affordable homes, but California is one of the worst off: Only Oregon and Nevada have fewer available homes per household.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At the same time, most of California\u2019s extremely-low income households are spending more than half their income on rent, putting them at greater risk of falling into homelessness.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Renee Willis, NLIHC president and CEO, in a news release: \u201cWhen renters are housing cost-burdened, they cannot afford to cover other basic necessities such as food, healthcare, transportation, or childcare.\u201d<\/p>\n

The findings haven\u2019t budged much from last year\u2019s report, showing that despite ongoing efforts<\/a> in the legislature to get more housing built, California hasn\u2019t made noticeable progress for its lowest-earning renters.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Part of the problem could be a lack of funding. As my colleague Ben Christopher recently reported<\/a>, nearly 40,000 affordable units throughout the state are just waiting to be built \u2013 if only they had the money.\u00a0<\/p>\n

More ways to get CalMatters news: We have an app, available for both iPhone<\/a> and Android<\/a> users. You\u2019ll get a notification each morning about the day\u2019s top stories, and you\u2019ll be the first to know about important breaking news. And we can send you text alerts on our latest investigations, election coverage and more. Sign up here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Other Stories You Should Know<\/p>\n

Medi-Cal for all, regardless of citizenship?<\/p>\n

\"AA UCSF-Fresno staff member checks the blood sugar of a farmworker during a check-up during a Rural Mobile Health program visit at a farm outside of Helm on June 16, 2025. Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters\/CatchLight Local<\/p>\n

A new bill<\/a> would allow all income-qualifying Californians to access Medi-Cal, no matter their citizenship status.<\/p>\n

Gov. Gavin Newsom had gradually expanded access to Medi-Cal (California\u2019s system of Medicaid) to undocumented immigrants, but, as costs grew, he partially reversed course with last year\u2019s budget. If passed, Senate Bill 1422 would walk back many of those cuts and ensure that all immigrant adults age 19 and older can enroll.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Democratic Senator Mar\u00eda Elena Durazo<\/a> of Los Angeles: \u201cWe are no healthier as a community than the person least able to access care.\u201d<\/p>\n

Durazo argues that immigrants without legal status contribute billions in taxes each year and many of them now cannot benefit from programs those dollars support.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Whether Newsom would sign her legislation is unclear but seemingly unlikely, as the state grapples with a deficit for the fourth straight year.<\/p>\n

Read the full story<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Good news for State Farm customers<\/p>\n

\"AThe rubble of homes that burned down on Pacific Coast Highway near Malibu, as a result of the Palisades Fire. Jan. 9, 2025. Photo by Ted Soqui for CalMatters<\/p>\n

Some Californians who faced recent insurance hikes would get refunds under a new proposed settlement with State Farm. Others would be protected from additional increases to their premiums.\u00a0<\/p>\n

State Farm, the largest insurer in the state, raised rates after wildfires in Los Angeles County last year forced it to pay out billions of dollars in claims. Consumer advocacy group Consumer Watchdog questioned those increases, and after months of public hearings, a proposed deal was struck between Consumer Watchdog, State Farm and the state Insurance Department.<\/p>\n

All in all, the settlement would save California policyholders $530 million, according to Consumer Watchdog.<\/p>\n

In addition to the cost savings, State Farm agreed not to cancel any new policies this year.<\/p>\n

Read more here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

California Voices<\/p>\n

CalMatters columnist Dan Walters: The field is set for the race for California governor, and it\u2019s all the more exciting because we don\u2019t have a clear frontrunner. Here are some ways<\/a> that could shake out.<\/p>\n

There are many ways to improve California\u2019s elections, but returning to a closed primary system would be a step backward, writes Alan Zundel<\/a>, a retired political science professor and a founding member of the Equal Vote Coalition.
<\/a><\/p>\n

Other things worth your time:<\/p>\n

Some stories may require a subscription to read.<\/p>\n

ICE arrests of immigrants without criminal records surge in Northern California \/\/ The Mercury News<\/a><\/p>\n

UCSD professors wanted money to research telepathy. They turned to Jeffrey Epstein \/\/ The San Diego Union-Tribune<\/a><\/p>\n

Have a Montana License Plate in California? Officials Have an Eye on You \/\/ The New York Times<\/a><\/p>\n

Newsom planning $19-million push to polish California\u2019s national image \/\/ Los Angeles Times<\/a><\/p>\n

They bought their North Beach dream home. The city says it must become four apartments \/\/ San Francisco Chronicle\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

She was arrested for holding a protest sign in small-town California: \u2018This is a testing ground\u2019 \/\/ The Guardian<\/a><\/p>\n

.wp-block-group__inner-container > :not(h2){margin: 16px 40px !important;}.cm-cta.long-ask .wp-block-group .wp-block-group__inner-container{display: flex;gap: 12px;align-items: center;}.cm-cta.long-ask figure{max-width: 40px;flex-shrink: 0;}.cm-cta.long-ask .wp-block-group p{font-size: 18px;font-weight: 700;line-height: 120%;letter-spacing: -0.36px;width: 100%;}.cm-cta.long-ask .wp-block-group .wp-block-buttons{flex-shrink: 0;}.cm-cta.long-ask .wp-block-button__link{padding-left: 40px;padding-right: 40px;}@container long-ask (min-width: 601px){.cm-cta.long-ask *{font-size: 16px;}}@container long-ask (max-width: 600px){.cm-cta.long-ask h2,.cm-cta.long-ask .wp-block-group p{text-align: center;}.cm-cta.long-ask h2{background: linear-gradient(90deg,#FFE094 0%,#FFB500 100%);padding: 12px 20px;font-size: 20px;letter-spacing: -0.4px;}.cm-cta.long-ask .wp-block-group .wp-block-group__inner-container{flex-direction: column;}.cm-cta.long-ask > .wp-block-group__inner-container > :not(h2){margin: 16px 20px !important;}}]]><\/p>\n

Nonpartisan, independent California news for all<\/p>\n

We\u2019re CalMatters, your nonprofit and nonpartisan news guide.<\/p>\n

Our journalists are here to empower you and our mission continues to be essential.<\/p>\n

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We are focused on California issues. From the environment to homelessness, economy and more, we publish the unfettered truth to keep you informed.<\/p>\n

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But we can\u2019t keep doing this without support from readers like you.<\/p>\n

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Please give what you can today. Every gift helps.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Avatar\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLynn La is the newsletter writer for CalMatters, focusing on California\u2019s top political, policy and Capitol stories every weekday. She produces and curates WhatMatters, CalMatters\u2019 flagship daily newsletter…\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMore by Lynn La\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Construction workers building an apartment complex site for an affordable housing project in Bakersfield on May 29, 2024.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":515108,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[4,450,451,3,452,453],"class_list":["post-515107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-breaking-news","tag-breaking-news","tag-breakingnews","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/515107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=515107"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/515107\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/515108"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=515107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=515107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=515107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}