Happy Monday! SBCAN is excited to announce our new monthly housing newsletter, offering our members a brief recap of housing news, trends, and developments. Here's what you need to know. 

Federal

  • Vouchers for at-risk families still running low on money. A program called EHV (“Emergency Housing Vouchers” helps people facing homelessness or domestic violence) is still expected to run out of funding. Congress set aside $600 million as a backup, which should help current voucher holders, including here in the county.1

  • Fewer fair housing protections from the federal government. HUD released several guidance documents announcing withdrawal from federal fair housing rules (such as protections for support animals and restrictions on the use of criminal records in housing decisions). This means more of these decisions will now be left to state and local law.2

  • New “work requirement” rule proposed. HUD wants to allow housing authorities to require people to work to receive housing assistance, and to set time limits on that assistance. This is not final yet; it’s still under review.3

  • Overall federal approach: HUD leadership continues focusing on cutting rules and easing restrictions, saying this will speed up housing and lower costs.

 State

  • Santa Barbara County and City awarded state “Prohousing” status. Governor Newsom announced $11.3 million in grant awards for 13 designated Prohousing communities statewide. Both the County of Santa Barbara and City of Santa Barbara earned the designation, unlocking priority access to additional state funding for local affordable housing and infrastructure.4

  • $239 million released to fast-track shovel-ready projects. The state awarded nearly $239 million to quickly break ground on 20 affordable rental developments across California. By using a streamlined four-month review process, the state bypassed typical administrative delays.5

  • $11.25 billion housing bond proposed for the ballot. Lawmakers are advancing the Veterans and Affordable Housing Bond Act of 2026. If approved by voters, it will inject $10 billion into multifamily construction, farmworker housing, and Homekey supportive housing conversions, key resources for Santa Barbara County’s unhoused and agricultural populations.6

  • State escalates enforcement against non-compliant cities. The Newsom administration’s Housing Accountability Unit filed legal action against five local governments for failing to adopt compliant Housing Elements. While Santa Barbara County operates under state-approved plans, California continues to take aggressive legal action to strip zoning authority from defiant cities.7

 

County

  • County CSD releases Vehicular Homelessness Study. The Santa Barbara County Community Services Department (CSD-HCD) published a report analyzing vehicular residents across unincorporated areas who do not interact with traditional response systems, aiming to refine local shelter and housing intervention programs.8

  • Rezone execution continues across 28 unincorporated sites. Following state HCD’s rezone compliance confirmation, County Planning & Development is actively implementing its 2023–2031 Housing Element programs to meet its 5,664-unit RHNA mandate, focusing density incentives in communities like Orcutt and Eastern Goleta Valley.9

  • UCSB advances construction on 3,500+ student beds: Massive construction continues on the San Benito and East Campus housing projects. The multi-story developments will add over 3,500 beds to meet campus master-planning targets and ensure two years of housing for incoming students.10

  • August real estate metrics show tightening county inventory. Mid-August housing reports show single-family inventory across the county dropping 13% month-over-month. While median prices softened slightly, shrinking overall supply is accelerating sales speed and placing increased pressure on local workforce housing availability.11

By City

Buellton

  • Nothing significant to report. Housing activity remains confined to standard single-family market resales with no new major entitlements or legislative actions.

Carpinteria

  • 191-unit "The Farm" project continues to navigate the coastal review process. Developers continue advancing plans for 191 homes on the Carpinteria Bluffs, 39 units deemed affordable in partnership with People's Self-Help Housing, while the city continues to balance state housing quota mandates against local coastal preservation concerns.12

Goleta

  • Public planning notices issued for infill residential proposals. Goleta issued environmental and planning hearing notices to review exemption filings and the merits of site design for new local infill housing developments.13

  • Shelby residential project moves forward. 56-home development near Glen Annie Golf Course, 11 deed-restricted affordable units, continues site layout work following council approval.14,15

  • Tenancy terminations issued at University Mobile Home Park: Amid ongoing litigation over Goleta's emergency senior mobile home overlay, new ownership at University Mobile Home Park sent 60-day lease termination notices to renting residents at the Old Town Goleta community. The notice canceled pending mobile home sales.16

  • Patterson Point supportive housing completed: The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara (HASBARCO) marked the formal completion of Patterson Point (80 N. Patterson Ave), bringing 22 permanent supportive studio units for formerly unhoused individuals.17

Guadalupe

  • Nothing significant to report. The city continues to operate under existing housing policies, with tight overall inventory and no major pending development applications.

Lompoc

  • Affordable Senior Housing Expo held on August 13. HASBARCO hosted an information expo at Cypress Court Apartments in Lompoc to assist senior residents with affordable housing waitlists and application resources.18

  • Bodger Meadows 354-unit proposal under environmental scoping. Santa Barbara County and Lompoc staff continue evaluating the environmental study requirements for a 354-home Builder’s Remedy project proposed near city boundaries.19,20

Santa Barbara

  • Presidio Springs senior redevelopment advances. Phase 1 of the Housing Authority of the City of Santa Barbara (HACSB) senior housing expansion cleared historic landmark reviews. The phase will replace 48 aging apartments with 104 new units, marking the first step in expanding the overall site from 122 to 327 affordable senior apartments.21

  • Housing Authority warns of federal voucher cutoff. HACSB confirmed that federal EHVs supporting local unhoused residents face funding depletion by late 2026, prompting local agencies to search for alternative municipal subsidies to prevent displacement.22

  • "Better Buildings" pilot program reviewed in joint meeting: A joint workshop between the City Council and Planning Commission was to deliberate on a new 5-year pilot program. The proposed point-based program lets downtown developers trade energy-efficiency features or affordable units for zoning incentives such as unlimited density, reduced yard requirements, or modified height limits.23

  • City Council approves Program Environmental Impact Report. The Santa Barbara City Council voted to approve a program-level EIR that streamlines environmental review for 32 current and future municipal housing programs.24

Santa Maria

  • City Council passes senior mobile home park overlay to prevent all-ages conversions. Santa Maria City Council voted to establish a Senior Mobile Home Park Overlay District. The zoning protection covers five existing age-restricted communities, Casa Del Rio, Casa Grande, La Maria, Rancho Buena Vista, and Trailerancho, preserving affordable housing for over 1,000 senior households.25

Solvang

  • Nothing significant to report. No major municipal housing policy shifts or approvals for high-density projects were enacted as of late August.

Thank you for your attention and time. SBCAN is looking to make this an iterative process, and we aim to get better with each newsletter.

We encourage you to write questions, comments, and concerns to [email protected].