Gavin Newsom on Housing

Gavin Newsom has made addressing California's housing shortage a central priority, initially pledging the audacious goal of building 3.5 million new units by 2025, a target many considered unrealistic. While housing production levels remained near 100,000 units annually despite his efforts, he has focused on administrative and legislative actions to boost supply, including signing major bills like SB 79 to override local zoning for multi-family housing near transit and enacting reforms to streamline approvals. His administration also set statewide goals of 180,000 new units yearly and imposed quotas on local governments.

The focus of his approach is multifaceted, combining supply-side reforms with efforts to combat homelessness and address underlying health issues. He is leading efforts to convert vacant buildings into mental health and housing communities, supported by Proposition 1 funding, and has directed significant funding to combat homelessness, touting a drop in unsheltered populations. More recently, he signaled a populist pivot by proposing enhanced state oversight and potential tax code changes to curb large institutional investors buying significant stocks of housing to rent out, aiming to make home ownership more accessible for residents.