With San Francisco permitting on average fewer than one new housing unit per day this year, the city's ongoing housing crisis and homelessness issues are being further exacerbated, according to federal data published by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The city issued 179 new units through June, compared to the first five months of the year, where only 81 permits were issued. These figures highlight San Francisco's struggle to keep up with housing demands, as it lags behind several neighboring cities such as San Jose, Santa Clara, and Oakland.
While the housing crisis unfolds, San Franciscans are struggling with one of the nation's most expensive rental markets and a visible homelessness crisis. A statewide UCSF survey found that 89% of unhoused Californians say affordability impacts their ability to find permanent housing. A recent Axios analysis showed that in May 2023, San Francisco issued fewer new homebuilding permits compared to May 2020, during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nationwide, there is an estimated shortage of about 3.8 million housing units, contributing to the high market prices.
To address this urgent housing situation, San Francisco Mayor London Breed has been attempting to reduce barriers in the city's permitting and approval processes and remove some density restrictions. As part of a state-mandated plan, San Francisco must create more than 82,000 new housing units over the next eight years to meet the city's goals. In an effort to meet these targets, Mayor Breed and Supervisor Aaron Peskin introduced legislation in July that would reduce affordable housing requirements in new rental and condominium buildings, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle.
In addition, Mayor Breed has introduced the "Housing for All initiative" which aims to allow for the construction of 82,000 new homes by 2031, as mentioned in a KRON4 report. The initiative proposes to streamline the city's process for issuing key project approvals like Site Permits, which could reduce permitting times for new developments and major renovations by months, or even years.
