California Climate & Energy Collaborative

Priority Area: Housing & Climate Nexus

The SLECC Priority Area Pages are in a Beta Test version. We welcome all feedback using either the survey link below or by clicking on any of the key challenges or potential solutions to provide comments on an individual item!

What is the Housing and Climate Nexus?

California is experiencing acute and entwined housing and climate crises that are worsening racial and economic inequities. Decades of sprawling and decentralized growth, housing underproduction, and poorly integrated public transportation options have led to rising vehicle miles traveled (VMT), contributing to higher greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, reduced affordability, poorer air quality, and health outcomes, and yet more development on natural and working lands that limits the state’s ability to sequester carbon naturally.

The housing crisis is severe by any measure – California needs an estimated 2.5-3.5 million additional housing units to meet current demand, with median home prices roughly double the national average and many metro areas exceeding $800,000. Renters typically spend 40-50% or more of their income on housing, well above the 30% affordability threshold, creating geographic disparities where coastal areas have the most acute shortages while more affordable inland areas often lack job opportunities and infrastructure.

SLECC participants explored how we could work together to accelerate our effectiveness in developing, rebuilding and retrofitting homes.  In December 2024, the initial Catalyst Convening webinar – many regions highlighted  the importance of alignment on housing and climate policy

What future are we working towards?

State and local participants envision a future housing market that provides an adequate supply of housing that is accessible and affordable for all and makes the most of vacant or underutilized land in urban areas (infill).

Which State Agencies are working on this issue?

This priority area is relevant to the function of:

  • California Energy Commission
  • California Public Utilities Commission
  • California Air Resources Board
  • Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development
  • California Environmental Protection Agency
  • California Department of Transportation (Caltrans)
  • Strategic Growth Council
  • Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation.

What’s already working?

California has set a goal of planning for 2.5 million new homes by 2030, including no less than one million affordable homes. In recent years, the legislature has passed multiple laws to streamline infill housing development and make it more economically viable, including various development incentives such as streamlined approval processes.

Infill housing development – building on unused or underutilized land within existing urban areas – has emerged as a critical strategy for addressing both crises simultaneously. This approach reduces driving and greenhouse gas emissions by placing homes near jobs, transit, and amenities while creating more vibrant, walkable communities and making efficient use of existing infrastructure. State investments in affordable housing programs have already produced tens of thousands of infill homes in transit- and amenity-rich locations, lowering housing cost burdens, reducing emissions, and creating thousands of construction and maintenance jobs.

California’s investments in affordable housing programs have led to adaptive reuse and infill housing developments resulting in tens of thousands of homes in transit- and amenity-rich locations that have lowered housing cost burdens, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and created thousands of jobs to create and maintain those homes; 

Under Executive Order N-06-19, the State has made excess state-owned properties available for affordable housing development at low cost, creating a pipeline for the development of thousands of new affordable homes on infill sites. On July 31, 2024, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order (N-2-24) to accelerate and streamline infill development projects to transform undeveloped and underutilized properties statewide into livable and affordable housing for Californians. The order aims to help communities build thriving downtown cores and new housing near transportation hubs and job centers, creating more housing options for Californians while further aligning the state’s housing and climate goals.

Despite these successes, significant barriers persist in scaling infill development, including high costs from land values, materials, labor, fees, complex permitting processes, lengthy development timelines, regulatory requirements, and local opposition. The Strategic Growth Council and other state leaders recognize the need for better state-local coordination to advance housing, climate, and equity goals together, with ongoing efforts like SLECC initiatives working to improve alignment between different levels of government. This integrated approach acknowledges that housing and climate policies must work in tandem rather than as separate challenges, with infill development serving as a key strategy for addressing California’s interconnected crises.

What’s keeping us from getting there and how do we overcome these barriers?

To achieve the desired future outlined above, California will need to accelerate climate action across CA. Participants share that several key barriers impede progress and require further attention, as detailed below: Housing Regulation, Infrastructure for Housing Access, Financing, Wealth Gap, Climate Resilient Housing and Rebuilding. Click on the barriers below to view details about challenges experienced across the state and solution opportunities at the state and local level. 

Filterable Database
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    Barrier 1: Housing Regulation

    Complex zoning laws, inconsistent CEQA requirements, lengthy permitting processes, and local opposition to new development have historically limited housing production and infill development.

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    Barrier 2: Infrastructure for Housing Access

    New developments must provide for access to schools, parks, utilities, and transportation infrastructure, which can exacerbate tensions between green space conservation and density and require lengthy approval processes creating costs and delays.

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    Barrier 3: Housing Financing

    Affordable housing developments require complex financing involving multiple funding sources, many of which are highly competitive and include excessive and inconsistent requirements,  and extend development timelines.

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    Barrier 4: Wealth Gap

    Social inequities including the growing wealth gap underlie and exacerbate housing access and affordability issues.

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    Barrier 5: Climate Resilient Housing

    There is a lack of resources dedicated to to making homes more wildfire, heat and energy resilient and insurable (e.g. fire resistance materials, backup power/batteries). Aging housing stock, inequitable investments, weak building codes, and limited insurance and workforce capacity leave low-income and vulnerable communities unable to afford or access upgrades that make homes safe from heat, wildfire, and other climate hazards.

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    Barrier 6: Rebuilding

    Rebuilding homes after disasters is slow, inequitable, and fragmented, leaving low-income and marginalized communities facing prolonged displacement and lost opportunities to rebuild for greater resilience and adaptation.

Local Solution Spotlights

Help us strengthen our knowledge base!

Help us to expand our database. Either share new ideas, best practices or general feedback via this form, or click on a particular item to share additional feedback, information, examples of progress on that particular item.

Feedback Form

Additional Resources

Please share any additional resources you would like to include by emailing eecoordinator@civicwell.org.