From MTC News & Media, February 9, 2023
“Enterprise Community Partners (Enterprise) and the Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) … issued new research [on February 9th] revealing that there are 395 affordable housing developments in various stages of pre-development across the nine-county Bay Area that would create an estimated 32,944 affordable homes in one of the most expensive real estate markets in the country. The analysis found that these developments need $7.6 billion in public financing in order to move forward. The Bay Area Affordable Housing Pipeline research brief offers insights into where planned affordable developments are located across the nine-county region as well as how to fund the current pipeline of homes and boost production into the future.
“One solution Enterprise and BAHFA have identified to close the $7.6 billion gap and accelerate affordable housing production in the Bay Area is a 2024 regional ballot measure that would create a $10 billion to $20 billion regional housing bond dedicated to funding affordable housing developments across the region. BAHFA was authorized to place such a bond measure on the ballot through its enabling legislation in 2019.
“The Pipeline shows that there are affordable housing developments planned in all nine counties across the region, including 10,829 affordable homes in Santa Clara County, 7,916 in Alameda County, 7,258 in San Francisco City and County, and 2,209 in Sonoma County. But right now each Bay Area city, town or county is currently working on its own to address the regional challenges of housing affordability and homelessness. The proposed bond would allow for a more coordinated, equitable approach at the scale of the need across the region.