A study by California State University, Fullerton finds that California’s affordable housing problem is due in part to its success.
The report the shortage of housing for low- and medium-income earners is most acute where economic growth is strongest.
“In California, a unique set of circumstances has created a shortage of housing in general, with the problem being acute in land-constrained, high-growth counties, such as Orange County and Santa Clara County,” said Radha Battahcharya, an associate professor at Cal State Fullerton who did the study.
Bhattacharya attributed the shortage to four main factors: what she termed “excessive” regulation; housing-related litigation; a trend since the 1970s away from long-term planning to short-term impact assessments; and increased local discretion in development and decision-making.
In her study, Battahcharya suggests specific policy changes including revising what she called “counterproductive” regulations and the elimination of inconsistencies among federal, state and local rules.
“Over the last decade, California has gone from being a leader of innovative state housing policy to a laggard,” Bhattacharya asserted.
A 1999 study conducted by the National Association of Homebuilders reported that California had 15 of the nation’s 25 most expensive housing markets.
