Affordable housing

California Housing Bills Could Take Away Subsidies for Homeowners and Add Them for Renters

California lawmakers have introduced more than 130 bills this year that try to tackle the state’s housing affordability crisis.

Reams of statistics support the depth of the problem: California’s homeownership rate is at its lowest since World War II, a third of renters spend more than half of their income on housing costs and the state has nearly a quarter of the nation’s homeless residents — despite having 12% of the overall U.S. population.

We Need REAL Solutions to the Housing Crisis

Californians are living in overcrowded, uninhabitable conditions and are paying more than half their income in rent. Meanwhile cities primarily produce luxury market-rate housing (if they produce any at all), lack basic anti-displacement policies, and code enforcement departments don't prioritize the needs of tenants.

We need to change our priorities to protect people first, not profits. Instead of housing policy for the few, we propose these guiding principles to inform state and local legislative solutions:

NY Times Wrong: Tech Not Driving Out SF Kids

In our new world of fake news and alternative facts, a front page New York Times story wrongly blaming tech for San Francisco’s lack of children (“San Francisco Asks: Where Have All the Children Gone,” January 2) may not seem that disturbing. But the problem with the story is simple: the reporter compared 1970 and 2010 census figures to show a decline in San Francisco’s child age population instead of comparing 2010 to 2000. Why use a nearly 50 year old census figure instead of more recent data?

Project Sentinel: Redwood City Office

Project Sentinel assists individuals with housing problems such as discrimination, mortgage foreclosure & delinquency, rental issues including repairs, deposits, privacy, dispute resolution, home buyer education, post purchase education and reverse mortgages. 

Redwood City Office, Housing Discrimination:

Project Sentinel's Fair Housing Center provides education and counseling to community members, housing providers, and tenants about fair housing laws. We also investigate complaints and advocate for those who have experienced housing discrimination.

Bay Area Voter Guide

The November 2016 election ballot is daunting, to say the least, but there are some real gems at the city and county levels that renters and those who want to fight against gentrification and displacement don't want to miss. We've put together a simple flyer to use when you vote. This year, when you vote, you can help keep tenants in their homes! 5 cities are going to the ballot to pass rent control, which would collectively protect at least 125,000 people from displacement.

Renters Highlight Lack of Affordable Housing with National Day of Action

More than 110 million people in the United States are renters – a reflection of how the American dream of owning a home has increasingly become a fantasy. And many of those renters who cannot afford to buy a house are straining to pay rents that consume more and more of their incomes. According to Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, one-quarter of renters in the U.S. pay more than half of their earnings on housing.

Help build power for renters' rights: