NEWS & UPDATES
From the LeSar Portfolio of Firms
April 2025 Newsletter
New HUD Secretary Leading Drastic Program and Staff Cuts at HUD
With the confirmation of Scott Turner, a former developer and Texas state legislator, as the new Secretary of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the [...]
Continuing Resolution Likely to Extend Federal Budget Negotiations Past March
Lawmakers have until midnight on March 14, 2025, to pass a final FY 25 spending agreement, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune has recently indicated the high likelihood of [...]
Notable New State Bills Tackle Streamlining, RHNA, and Housing Finance
Friday, February 21, 2025, marked the deadline for bills that lawmakers in the State Capitol could introduce. This was the first year that leaders in the Legislature imposed introduction [...]
Seattle Social Housing Developer Builds Greater Momentum Around Social Housing
In February, the City of Seattle voters approved Proposition 1A to fund the previously approved Seattle Social Housing Developer, a public development authority that will create social housing in Seattle. [...]
What We’re Reading
REPORTS / RESOURCES
2025 California Legislative Preview: Rebuilding, Accelerating Production and Funding Affordable Housing | Terner Center for Housing | March 2025
California’s Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Program: AHSC Impact Report, Rounds 1 to 8 | California Housing Partnership and Enterprise Community Partners | March 2025
The 2025 California Affordable Housing Pipeline | Enterprise Community Partners | March 2025
No State Has an Adequate Supply of Affordable Rental Housing for the Lowest-Income Renters | National Low Income Housing Coalition | March 2025
Governor Newsom Expands First-in-the-Nation Program to Transform Underutilized State Land into Affordable Housing | Office of Governor Gavin Newsom | February 2025
State of California Accountability | State of California | February 2025
ARTICLES/MEDIA
‘Quiet Panic’ as National Rental Assistance Program Set to Run Out of Cash | CalMatters | March 18, 2025
Affordable Housing Threatened as Trump Halts $1 Billion Slated for Extending Life of Aging Buildings | AP | March 12, 2025
Trump DEI Purge Hits Affordable Housing Groups | Bloomberg | March 12, 2025
Builders Stockpile Lumber, Swap Out Materials to Work Around Tariffs | WSJ | March 11, 2025
Apartment, Multifamily Housing Groups Ask Trump to Review Housing Regulations | Smart Cities Dive | March 10, 2025
How California Homeless Programs Are Helping People Get Fit and Off the Streets: ‘It’s The Bike’ | CalMatters | March 10, 2025
They Tried to Pay Their Overdue Rent. Their Landlord Wouldn’t Accept It. | CalMatters | March 10, 2025
Trump Is on Track to Ditch a Time-Tested Approach to Combating Homelessness | Vox | March 7, 2025
Los Angeles Stops Accepting New Applicants for Section 8, Citing Budget Uncertainty in Washington | Los Angeles Times | March 6, 2025
Renters, Builders Defend San Diego’s ADU Program as Council Backs Off Repeal Effort | KPBS | March 5, 2025