NEWS & UPDATES
From the LeSar Portfolio of Firms
April 2026 Newsletter
Housing Reform Efforts Advance Alongside New Executive Actions
In the weeks following the enactment of the FY 2026 HUD budget, Federal housing policy has continued to evolve through a combination of legislative momentum [...]
California Housing Update: From Early Signals to Emerging Priorities in 2026
As the 2026 legislative session progresses, California’s housing agenda is beginning to take clearer shape. While early hearings focused on resolving second-year bills and [...]
Making Encampment Resolution Work: A Systems Approach from Palm Springs
Homeless encampments have grown across the U.S., driven by a shortage of affordable housing, limited resources, and fragmented systems that make coordinated responses difficult. [...]
The Human Impact of the Palm Springs Encampment Resolution Fund Program: Luke’s Journey Home
Article Contributor: Lizeth Hernandez Herrera, Case Manager, Jewish Family Service Despite the intractable nature of homelessness nationally, local success can still be achieved through coordinated, [...]
Don’t Miss Future Newsletter Issues! (We’re changing the sending address for our monthly newsletter)
Starting in May 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
Thinking About the Growing Housing Affordability Problem: A Primer for Sound Policy | Brookings Institute | March 2026
2026 California Legislative Preview | UC Berkeley Terner Center for Housing Innovation | March 2026
Curbing Fees: How States and Cities are Addressing Up-Front Rental Costs | Harvard Joint Center for Housing | March 2026
Assessing the Potential of Transit Agency-Owned Land for Housing Development in California | Enterprise Community Partners | March 2026
Where the Road Ends: Permanent Supportive Housing Outcomes and Moving On | National Alliance to End Homelessness | February 2026
ARTICLES/MEDIA
Putting the ‘lord’ In ‘Landlord’: US Churches Step Up to Build Housing Amid Shortage | The Guardian | March 29, 2026
A New Homelessness Strategy is Sweeping California | CalMatters | March 25, 2026
Development Gives Residents a Financial Stake | Affordable Housing Finance | March 19, 2026
Even Low-Risk Homes Are Caught Up in California’s Climate-Driven Insurance Crisis | LA Times | March 18, 2026
Austin’s Surge of New Housing Construction Drove Down Rents | Pew Center | March 18, 2026
A Pet‑Friendly Homeless Shelter Pilot Reduced the Rate of Homelessness Among the People it Helped in California | The Conversation | March 16, 2026
The Bittersweet Path to the Housing Crisis — and How to Find Our Way Home | Planetizen | March 16, 2026
Seattle Social Housing Developer Wins New Tool from State Lawmakers | The Urbanist | March 14, 2026
10 Projects from Newsom’s Mental Health Bond Were Supposed to Open in 2025. That Didn’t Happen | CalMatters | March 12, 2026
California Has 40,000 Affordable Housing Units Ready to Break Ground. One Setback is Holding Them Up | CalMatters | March 9, 2026