California, Housing

After years of trying to get more properties built for sale downtown, new urban infill projects are springing up in Sacramento's core.

With the downturn in the housing market, a planned luxury condo tower in Downtown San Diego has been reworked into an affordable housing development.

A controversial bill approved at the end of the California State Senate's regular session may allow developers of a massive entertainment development in downtown Los Angeles to compete for millions of dollars in affordable housing funds.

Complaints over parking have led the city of Martinez, California, to realize an affordable housing complex built for seniors has been renting at market rates for years.

Housing advocates in Sacramento are up in arms over proposed changes to the city's housing policy that would shift responsibility for building affordable units from the developer to the city -- changes they say will limit the policy's effectiveness.

In Los Angeles and much of Southern California, more multi-family homes are being planned and built than single-family residences.

Even when lower-income households are lucky enough to find an affordable home to purchase, high association fees can put a damper on their initial good fortune.

While pricey eco-chic homes garner lots of attention, living green doesn't have to mean expensive materials and complicated retrofits.

William Fulton observes that while high-income households are flocking to the inner-city and gobbling up pricey condos, poor families are having to double and triple up just to afford a home in the suburbs.

A Los Angeles Times investigation reveals a highly-paid manager for the Los Angeles City Housing Authority rigging bids worth nearly $1 million over four years.

To help encourage development around downtown and increase the supply of affordable housing, planning officials in L.A. want to relax the rules governing the sizes of housing units. Critics argue that the plan will lead to the creation of tenements.

A district appeals court ruling has invalidated the housing element of San Francisco's general plan, arguing that the environmental consequences of the plan's increased density were not considered.

With more homeowners looking for creative ways to finance their home or house relatives, Los Angeles is experiencing a revival of interest in duplexes.

California Planning & Development Report columnist Morris Newman doesn't think much of the Disney Company's attempts to prevent housing development in Anaheim's resort district.

Menlo Park, California, struggles with the compatibility of being green and fighting climate change, while resisting high density housing, even around transit stations and corridors.

Many modern day manufactured homes have upgraded their looks, attracting both buyers looking for value as well as style and sustainability.

City officials in Oakland, California, are proposing the creation of a "tent city" to provide temporary shelter to the homeless. Advocates say the private tents will be preferred to the city's existing barracks-style shelters.

Los Angeles has knocked down a former "Crips" gang hangout and has plans to convert it into affordable housing.

In an effort to development more moderately priced housing, developers around Sacramento are squeezing more homes per acre and moving garages to the back alley, pleasing some planners and conservationists.

San Francisco's density bonus is being used by for-profit developers marketing condos designated for seniors -- albeit for a price.