NEWS & UPDATES
From the LeSar Portfolio of Firms
March 2026 Newsletter
FY 2026 HUD Funding Enacted; Bipartisan Housing Reform Advances
After weeks of negotiation against the backdrop of a continuing resolution and broader appropriations process, Congress finalized full-year funding for the U.S. Department of Housing [...]
California Housing Update: Budget Constraints, Bond Momentum, and Innovation
Article Contributor: Jacqueline Woo, Senior Associate, Research & Policy, Global Policy Leadership Academy As the Legislature reconvened for the second year of its two-year cycle, housing [...]
Community Colleges as Workforce Partners in Homelessness Response: Partnering with Santa Monica College
Article Contributor: Stefan Gonzalez, Senior Associate, Homelessness Solutions Team, LeSar Development Consultants Throughout the country, homeless service providers are facing high staffing vacancies, worker burnout, and [...]
Don’t Miss Future Newsletter Issues! (We’re changing the sending address for our monthly newsletter)
Starting in April 2026, our newsletter will be sent from: [email protected] (instead of [email protected]) To make sure you continue receiving our emails without interruption, [...]
What We’re Reading
REPORTS / RESOURCES
The Cost of Fragmentation: A Comparison of State Affordable Housing Finance Governance Systems | Terner Center for Housing Innovation at UC Berkeley | February 2026
2026 Federal Housing Policy Preview | Terner Center for Housing Innovation at UC Berkeley | January 2026
Abundance for Who? | Center on Poverty & Inequality, Georgetown Law | January 2026
Assessing the Cost of Impact Fees on Affordable Housing: An Analysis of Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Projects in California | Terner Center for Housing Innovation at UC Berkeley | January 2026
Worst Case Housing Needs for Renters Ticked Down, But Remain High | Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies | January 2026
ARTICLES/MEDIA
Factory-Built Housing Hasn’t Taken Off in California Yet, But This Year Might be Different | CalMatters | February 13, 2026
Slums? Informal Settlements? Just Call These Cities ‘Homegrown’ | CityLab | February 11, 2026
California’s Blockbuster Housing Legislation Faces Rocky Rollout | Politico | February 10, 2026
SMC Expands Homeless Services Training Program With $355K Grant | Santa Monica Daily Press | February 10, 2026
Can Condo Conversions Deliver Long-Term Affordability? | Shelterforce | February 6, 2026
State Doesn’t Have Enough Money for Affordable Housing Fund, Lawmakers Say | Sacramento Bee | January 23, 2026
An Experiment to Move Homeless People Into Long-Term Housing Is Still Going Strong | Voice of San Diego | January 23, 2026
Sacramento is Doubling Down on Tiny Homes. Is it a Bold Move or a Misguided One? | Sacramento Bee | January 23, 2026
Building Affordable Housing in California is Pricey and Slow. Newsom Wants to Fix it by Consolidating Power | Politico | January 21, 2026
This Acclaimed S.F. Restaurant is Offering an Unusual Employee Benefit: Housing | San Francisco Chronicle | January 21, 2026