Statewide Region Local News: Housing


All Local Housing News articles contributed by our local media allies and other local newsrooms.

Image caption: Incorporated communities in California must manage local resources and your tax dollars according to a plan.
The Central Role of Planning in California Government

General Plans, mandated by the state and carried out by local counties, cities, and other municipalities, serve as a locality’s ‘constitution'.

Image caption: 207 units of market rate housing in Santa Cruz almost ready for occupancy in May 2024
How California Manages Housing as a Public Resource

Like the 33 million acres of forest in California, the nearly 15 million units of housing in the state are tended and managed with future generations in mind. Meet the California Department of Housing and Community Development.

Image caption: Does California’s signature environmental law protect the state’s scenic beauty, or cause more problems than it solves?
CEQA: The Surprising Story of CA’s Key Environmental Law

The California Environmental Quality Act, CEQA, is both the state’s signature environmental legislation, and is also often named as the villain in the state’s housing shortage. But the story may not be that simple.

Image caption: Zoning laws tell you what you can and can't build on the property you own. How does government get away with that?
How Zoning Laws Shape California and Society

Zoning laws determine what can be built and where. These laws have shaped California, but are they really just tools for social engineering? The history of zoning is closely tied to racial segregation, as well as the state's shortage of …

Image caption: Owning homes is the primary way the middle class builds wealth, and an option no longer available to most Californians.
Is California’s Housing Crisis Making Inequality Worse?

California has some of the worst economic inequality in the United States. Is the housing crisis a cause?

Image caption: Thousands of homeowners have been kicked off their fire insurance policies.
California Fire Insurance Crisis: How the State Helps Homeowners

As California insurance companies have revoked the fire policies of thousands of homeowners, the state has taken steps to get them covered again.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

02/04/2025
State Farm, which already has rate increase requests pending, asked state officials to approve more insurance price increases.

California Local Pin Marker From Los Angeles Times...

01/24/2025
Damages in the ongoing Southern California wildfires are topping $250 billion, on track for the costliest disaster in US history. Read on to learn more.

California Local Pin Marker From CapPublicRadio...

01/22/2025
A look at how the rebuilding effort is going in the California town of Paradise, wiped out in a 2018 fire, and how it offers insights for the tough road ahead for residents in neighborhoods destroyed in the fires of Southern California.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

01/16/2025
The wildfires sweeping through Los Angeles County communities have destroyed at least 10,000 homes so far and more are in the path of still-uncontrolled flames.

California Local Pin Marker From The Sacramento Bee...

01/14/2025
Read on to learn about the measures taken to harden and protect the lone remaining house of the neighborhoodfrom the Pacific Palisades fire in Southern California.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

12/26/2024
California officials continued to fight with cities that don’t want to build more housing and everyone struggled to find more money to pay for new housing.

California Local Pin Marker From Local News Matters...

12/26/2024
Tenant advocates suffered a big defeat this fall when California voters decided against expanding cities’ ability to limit rent increases. But a state law set to take effect Jan. 1 will give renters facing eviction a little more breathing room.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

12/16/2024
There’s no law requiring California property owners to carry insurance, but the vast majority buy it to protect themselves from fire and other perils, or are required to do so by their mortgage lenders.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

12/11/2024
Gov. Newsom launched an ambitious program that uses Medi-Cal to help Californians access housing, healthy food and more. Now, its fate is in the hands of President-Elect Trump.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

12/05/2024
The Public Policy Institute of California, a think tank that conducts vigorous and objective research into vital state issues, is celebrating its 30th anniversary with a series of retrospective reports.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

12/01/2024
California and federal prosecutors have accused software company RealPage of enriching itself ”at the expense of renters who pay inflated prices.”

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

11/21/2024
Floodwaters devastated the small communities of Pajaro and Planada in early 2023. California gave each town $20 million to recover – but as residents face down another winter, much of the aid has yet to reach them.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

10/17/2024
Multiple state agencies spent nearly $24 billion on housing and homeless programs in the first five years of Gavin Newsom’s governorship, but the number of people without homes continued to grow, rising by 20% to more than 180,000 in the most recent federal count in 2023.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

10/09/2024
California allotted half a billion dollars to help community land trusts across the state. But budget cuts and bureaucracy have land trust advocates back where they were in 2020: seeking state aid to preserve affordable housing.

California Local Pin Marker From The Sacramento Bee...

10/08/2024
How to apply rebate as part of the recent $80 million state program to electrify homes.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

09/30/2024
Homeless service providers are scaling back and taking out loans as they wait for late payments from the government.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

09/25/2024
Many California farmworkers have long lacked safe and affordable places to sleep — an issue thrown into sharp relief after last year’s mass shooting in Half Moon Bay, which left seven agricultural workers dead.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

09/24/2024
Tenant advocates say giving renters 10 days to respond to eviction notices, up from 5, will help those who live in rural areas and have trouble finding legal help. Some landlords argue it will increase their costs.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

09/19/2024
At a CalMatters event, California’s insurance commissioner says the changes he’s making will help homeowners and business owners. One idea: A state grant for those who spend money to protect their property from wildfires.