clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

housing crisis

Yes, building more housing will drive down SF home prices—but there’s a catch

"Maybe the reason NIMBY-flavored arguments remain so entrenched in the region is that, in a frustrating twist, sometimes NIMBYs are right."

The house on Magnolia Street

Even before Moms 4 Housing was evicted from 2928 Magnolia, racism and capitalism shaped the home’s history.

Why the fight for affordable housing is so hard to win

Conor Dougherty examines the housing crisis in "Golden Gates: Fighting for Housing in America."

Sen. Scott Wiener wants to eliminate single-family zoning in SF

Persistent SF-based lawmaker’s new bid would upzone nearly 60 percent of the city.

SF must build taller and expand into western neighborhoods, says report

There are three ways to hit the city’s housing targets over the next 30 years, but all of them mean challenging the status quo

San Francisco needs more money for eviction lawyers

Voters passed a proposition in 2018 to provide legal help for anyone facing eviction

Filed under:

  • Map

These are SF’s biggest canceled or delayed housing projects

What happens to a dream deferred?

How many vacant homes does SF really have?

More than you might think, but it’s a tricky question.

Who are the Bay Area’s NIMBYs—and what do they want?

Anti-development groups, which have largely flown under San Francisco’s political radar, have won elections, secured appointments, and halted high-density developments.

Republican-backed initiative wants to upend SF homeless navigation center plan

"San Franciscans are outraged."

San Jose called hardest place in U.S. to buy a home

Inventory in Silicon Valley capital is up, but it hasn’t made a dent in the problem.

SF’s wealthiest renters are having trouble paying for housing, says Harvard research

More money, more problems.

Why does the Sierra Club oppose affordable housing?

The Loma Prieta chapter of the environmental organization says no to a Moss Beach development due to sustainability concerns

SF’s largest landlord says it’s game to sell rent-controlled apartments to the city

City Hall wants Veritas Investments to put the brakes on sale of 76 old buildings.

As retail dies, should Union Square turn into a residential neighborhood?

Probably.

Yes, this study found that new housing drives down nearby rents

But there’s a catch when it comes to SF.

Homeless moms occupying Oakland house removed in late-night raid

Mothers say the law values property over people; property owner says "justice is served."

State could sue SF, other cities over homelessness under new plan

Governor’s task force wants to amend the constitution to put cities in the hot seat over crisis.

Palo Alto mayors talk about everything that’s wrong with Bay Area housing

"You can’t have a functional community comprised only of software engineers and patent attorneys."

Maybe underground ‘sleeping pods’ in the Mission aren’t a bad idea after all?

Don’t pooh-pooh the pupae-living spaces just yet.

Assemblymember David Chiu wants to tax vacant homes for homeless funding

"While thousands of Californians sleep on our streets every night, it makes little sense for the state to subsidize the wealthy’s ability to own two homes."

Newsom claims homelessness will be his top priority in 2020

It’s an issue he couldn’t fix while mayor of SF.

SF should just give homes to the homeless, says new poll

More than three-quarters of those surveyed support housing vouchers as the most effective solution.

Are San Franciscans really that unhappy?

Possibly no more than they’ve always been—but maybe that’s the problem.

Homeless moms in Oakland face post-Christmas eviction

Activists claim they have legal right to vacant home as court hearing looms.

SF City Hall can’t stop shooting down transit-housing bill

"We get it, you don’t like it," says frustrated state senator.

Young and black communities can’t afford homes because cities won’t build enough

New research ties social opportunity straight to housing production.

Mission District lawmaker wants to make it harder to buy out renters

Supervisor Hillary Ronen alleges that landlords skirt the law by using buyout offers as de facto evictions.

SF housing went on a rampage this past decade

Just as in the movies of old, science has created a monster in San Francisco: your mortgage.

Why do San Francisco homes go vacant?

It’s complicated.

SF considers plan to encourage development in Sunset and Richmond districts

ABAG proposal is non-binding, but could signal future interest in breaking density taboos on west side.

SF Housing Authority budget nightmare crashes promising homeless relief program

The agency spins its wheels and leaves the city’s Moving On Initiative with nowhere to move onto.

This 30-foot portion of a Russian Hill apartment wants $850 per month

It’s curtains for SF renters hoping for a break on the rent.

California transit-housing bill trashed in SF ahead of new push

State Sen. Scott Wiener’s SB 50 decried at City Hall for second time this year.

San Francisco has nearly five empty homes per homeless resident

And the Bay Area’s ten largest cities combined sport three empty homes for every two persons without one.

UC Berkeley now housing students in retirees’ homes

Matching program is in its pilot year as city dawdles over new housing.

City considers eviction protection for non-rent-controlled homes

Reported spike in evictions prompts local lawmaker to seek expansion of AB 1482.

SF housing becoming more affordable, say realtors

Are they thinking of the same San Francisco?

List of country’s most expensive ZIP codes reveals an out-of-control housing crisis

California makes up nearly the entire list.