The Bay Area Housing Bond:
Regional Funding for Local Solutions
In November 2024, Bay Area residents could potentially vote on a regional bond measure to generate up to $20 billion to build more affordable homes and help keep existing homes affordable.
A $20 billion dollar bond could build and preserve approximately 72,000 new affordable homes—doubling the number that would be possible without a bond.
Currently, the Bay Area doesn’t have enough affordable homes for the people who live here.
As a result of our housing shortage:
• In 2022, 37,000 people were unhoused in the Bay Area. • 1.4 million people—23% of Bay Area renters—spend over half their income on rent. • High rents and home prices force people to live far from work, making congestion and pollution much worse, and putting a major strain on working families.
The Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) is considering placing the housing bond measure on the November ballot to address these critical housing challenges.
Funding Local Solutions
A Regional Housing Bond will help fund local
solutions to meet the needs of our communities.
Money from the housing bond will be used to build new
affordable homes and preserve existing housing to
help protect vulnerable tenants across the Bay Area.
80% of the bond revenue will go directly to the nine
counties and four cities—San Jose, Oakland, Santa
Rosa, and Napa—letting local governments determine
how best to produce and preserve affordable housing
for their own communities.
Photo Credits: Alain McLaughlin Photography, courtesy NPH BAHFA will invest 20% of the bond revenue in
affordable developments throughout the region, while
also generating new housing resources to support
affordable housing development long after the bonds
are fully spent.
Every county and city receiving funds will adopt an
expenditure plan. BAHFA will review and confirm that all plans meet required criteria.
The majority of funds (at least 52%) will build more
affordable housing. At least 15% of funds will preserve existing housing. The remainder will build or preserve
more housing, support first-time home buyer assistance
and other housing related uses.
Photo Credit: Bruce Damonte
Photo Credit: Frank Domin
Photo Credit: Tim Griffith
How will the bond be funded?
The bond will be funded through property taxes. The
amount an individual household may expect to pay will
vary depending on the assessed value of their property.
The final bond amount is still to be determined. A
$20 billion bond would require an estimated tax of $19
per $100,000 in assessed value — or about $190 per
year for a $1,000,000 home.
Who will manage the funds?
BAHFA was established by the State Legislature in
2019 to support the construction of new affordable
housing and preservation of existing housing across
the nine-county region. It is governed by the BAHFA
board, which is composed of the same members as
the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the
Association of Bay Area Governments’ Executive
Board. These governing boards provide local elected
representation from across the Bay Area.
BAHFA will distribute funds directly to each county and city eligible to receive direct funding based on local
expenditure plans. BAHFA will retain 20% of the funds
for a new regional program to help produce and
preserve affordable housing throughout the Bay Area.
Accountability
State law requires BAHFA to be subject to regular,
independent audits and annual financial reporting,
including submitting an annual report to the California Legislature on allocations and expenditures under its
control. Cities and counties receiving direct allocations must also submit annual reports on expenditures and
progress toward goals to BAHFA. If voters approve the
Bond, a new Citizen Bond Oversight Committee will be
appointed to review how bond funds were spent to
ensure they were consistent with voter approval.
For More Information:
Kate Hartley
Director, Bay Area Housing Finance
Authority
Email: [email protected]
Website: mtc.ca.gov/bahfa