Just like how the purchase price of a car is not the entire cost, the purchase price of a house is not the entire cost either. Let’s discuss all the surprising costs that may come after you close escrow.

First of all, these are the unsurprising costs after you purchase a home:

• Monthly mortgage payment
• Home insurance payment
• Property taxes
• General and anticipated maintenance expenses
• Utilities

If you follow my 30/30/3 home-buying rule, you should be able to comfortably afford your home, even if you lose your job for a year or two.

My goal for this post is to highlight as many home ownership costs as possible so you can budget appropriately before and after purchase.

Surprising Costs That Come After You Purchase A Home

Your surprises will depend on your experience in buying a home. The more homes you’ve purchased, the less surprised you will be about these costs.

However, even if you’ve purchased multiple homes before, if you are upgrading homes you will likely still encounter unanticipated costs. This is especially true for folks who move from a condo/townhouse to a single-family home or for people who move from an urban environment to a suburban environment.

To minimize financial stress once you move in, it helps to build all of these costs into your budget in advance.

1) Curtains and blinds

One “trick” stagers and real estate agents like to employ when staging a home is removing all the curtains and blinds. This way, homes seem larger, brighter, and more cheerful. I was advised to remove all the dark heavy curtains in my home when I tried to sell in 2012. Thankfully, I didn’t given that was close to the bottom of the market.

As you are mesmerized by the greater space and natural light, you might forget you will have to buy custom drapes and blinds for many windows in the house if you like privacy. The home seller might still have the old drapes and blinds, but they may be old, hardware could get lost in the shuffle, or they simply may not match your tastes.

I went to a window treatments place called the Shade Store to get a quote for custom curtains and blinds for each room in the home we wanted to buy. The total estimated cost ended up being $25,600, and that was after the 25% designer discount! I was shocked.

Given I didn’t want to spend $25,600 on window treatments, we contacted Smith & Noble, a competing company we’ve used before. After some bargaining, we ended up paying about $9,800 for everything, including installation. It felt great to save over $16,000 on window treatments. But $9,800 is still a lot of money!

2) Bidets and washlets

Now that I’ve used a Toto washlet for over 10 years, I will never buy a home without them. At the very least, electrical outlets and water-line access needs to be near the toilets. Seriously folks, if you haven’t tried a Toto bidet washlet that cleans and dries, you don’t know what’s missing.

In the new house we wanted to buy, luckily, all of the main bathrooms had electrical outlets near the toilets. So I thought we’d be set to install the Toto washlets once we closed. However, after several visits, I realized they were all wall-hung toilets with tanks inside the walls. In addition, there was no water line access because it was also behind the wall!

Luckily, one of the toilets had a hole to the left of the toilet that was covered by a bumper pad. We took the cover off and there was the water pipe. From there, the contractor measured the distance and height from that valve to the center of the toilet. Then, he took a leap of faith and drilled into each of the remaining bathrooms’ wall tiles in hopes of finding the exact access point of the water line.

We bought five Toto washlets that each cost $1,100. We also paid a handyman and a plumber to drill five holes in the wall and install them all for $300 each. Overall, we spent about $7,400.

3) Changing all the locks

For security, it is highly recommended to change all your locks and codes once you purchase a home. Contractors, subcontracts, real estate agents, the previous owner, friends and relatives of the previous owner, and more could all still have copies.

Changing each lock might cost between $30 – $70. If you want help changing fancy gate codes and other special types of locks, you’ll have to pay more as well.

Our cost to update locks totaled $250. Not bad for something so important.

4) Security system – cameras and motion sensors

Your home may have an existing security system. Maybe it’s through ADT, Ring, Xfinity, or another security system. You would think setting up a security system would be as easy as just coming up with a new username and passcode. Then you’d call the security provider for monitoring service and off you’d go.

But it’s not always that simple. In our case, the security system was complicated with multiple cameras, zones, and sensors. We ended up hiring a guy who spent eight hours replacing equipment, changing keypads, testing all devices, and getting everything programmed.

The security installer also set up an internal camera system and a smart lock. It’s some pretty fancy stuff.

His eight hours of time plus new equipment ended up costing us $1,950. Given nothing is more important than the security of my family, I was fine to pay this money. However, the cost was about $1,000 more than I had expected.

5) Broken appliances that weren’t properly tested

A home inspection contingency is important because it gives you the chance to test all appliances, bathrooms, showers, and amenities. It’s not enough to just turn on the shower for one minute and say it works. You need to actually take a 15-minute shower or a 15-minute bath to make sure everything works.

Run the microwave for five minutes while all the lights in the house are on to ensure the house has enough power. Fill up several cups of water from the refrigerator to ensure the filter is working and there are no leaks. Test the garbage disposal. Test the garage door ten times and inspect the spring. Make sure all the windows properly open and shut. Test all the light switches etc.

Even after all your tests, you may still find something broken after you move in. In our case, we had not tested a full load of clothes in the washer and dryer. The seller said the washer and dryer were never used, so we forgot to do a thorough test before we moved.

When we came back to check on our wash 20 minutes later, the laundry room had flooded! We spent an hour mopping up buckets of water and then drying the floor.

When the plumber came, it turned out the filter at the bottom of the washer was loose. As a result, water was just leaking through it. Once he tightened the filter, everything worked. Ugh, such an easy check that could have prevented a lot of stress, time, and work.

Luckily we didn’t run the washer and go away for hours. If we had, there would likely be floor damage. The cost to fix the washer was free given the seller paid for it. Check your washer filter and dryer ducts folks!

6) Higher water and electricity bills

If you move to a bigger house on a larger lot, you will likely face much higher water and electricity bills than you are used to.

These are surprising costs because you’re not really using more electricity than normal. However, because your new home might have a hot tub, another refrigerator, electric instead of gas washers, radiant heat, and more, electricity costs add up.

If you move from a more temperate region to a region with hot summers and cold winters, your water and electricity bills will go way up as well.

Our new home has literally 10X more plants and is on an automatic sprinkler system that goes off for 15 minutes, four times a week. Our first water bill was for over $350 versus $50 normally.

Now that winter has arrived, we’ve turned off our automatic watering system that used to run for 15 minutes, four times a week.

7) New furnishings

If you’re moving into a larger space or are simply tired of your existing furniture and decor, you’ll have the added expense of new furnishings. The margins on furniture are huge and decorating your new home could easily run into the tens of thousands if you want to purchase new, quality pieces.

For example, I have an old desk I got at World Market almost 20 years ago. I loved it at the time, but it’s dated, bulky, and rather ugly now. Looking to replace it, I went to browse at the Room & Board showroom in San Francisco. I found a sleek, modern desk I loved, but it costs $2,000 after tax. Pricey! Now my old desk doesn’t look so shabby after all.

New couches can run between $1,000-$15,000, dining table sets can cost $1,000-$6,000, swivel chairs are between $600 – $2,200, and large area rugs can easily cost $5,000 – $10,000. The list goes on.

If you’re looking for some interior design help, you could pay an interior designer an unlimited amount of money to design every room in your home.

Check out this nice sectional from Arhaus furniture. $9,999 pre-tax for a sectional! Dang! When did furniture get so expensive?

8) Replacement appliances and devices

Never just assume that a home will come with every common appliance and device.

For example, home sellers may choose to take their washer and dryer to their new place. They may choose to take their non built-in microwave and even bathroom mirrors. Or the home may only come with one garage clicker when you need two. Always clarify with the selling agent and the disclosures what is and isn’t actually included in the sale.

Also make sure that nothing is missing before you close. I went to an open house once where the seller had installed over 10 Nest thermostats throughout the house. It seemed overkill to me, but that’s how the house was designed. Anyway, some lookie-loo snuck through the house and ended up stealing three of them, over $700 worth that needed to be replaced and reprogrammed.

We thought the seller was going to leave two wall mirrors in the main bedroom since the house was empty except for these two items during escrow. It turns out the sellers just hadn’t gotten to returning the mirrors to the stager from a year ago. Replacing the mirrors was a surprise cost right before closing.

9) Landscaping, new plants, and tree maintenance

If you’re lucky enough to have yard space at your new home but have never hired a landscaper before, you could be in for a surprise. Depending on how big your outdoor area is and what you want done, you could easily spend tens of thousands of dollars.

This summer, a landscaper quoted me $5,000 to landscape the front yard at one of my rentals. Given it was a simple job and we had some extra succulents, I decided to do the work with my son. Save money, build work ethic, and learn about rental property management. What’s not to love?

Adding retaining walls, leveling uneven ground, installing automatic irrigation systems, and installing outdoor lighting can easily run thousands of dollars. If you’re buying a house that has already been landscaped, learn to appreciate it.

After moving in, you may still have to pay to replace certain plants that may have been neglected. I wanted to replace some tropical looking plants at our new home and was shocked they cost $420 each (pictured on the left)! Luckily, I found a suitable alternative for a much more reasonable $35 per pot (pictured on the right).

$420 exotic plant on the left vs $35 alternative

The Cost Of Tree Removal And Maintenance

You may be faced with the cost of tree trimming or even tree removal. To remove huge trees, I’ve heard quotes of up to $50,000!

Trees, although beautiful, can cause a lot of damage if not properly maintained. In addition, if trees were planted too close to the house, their roots could damage the foundation and cause cracked pipes and leaks during rainy seasons. I know from past experience.

The original landscaper at our home planted three trees that can reach 25-feet heights within six inches of the home’s foundation. These type of trees need at least five feet on each side. Fortunately we realized the landscaper’s errors before we closed escrow and had the seller pay for their removal. We were able to save one ficus tree by replanting it in a different location.

In addition, extreme weather conditions can cause trees to uproot suddenly. We have friends who were displaced from their home for over a year in because of tree damage to their property during the 2021 atmospheric river.

10) The ongoing cost of owning your OLD home

Buying a home during the slow winter months may give you a better deal. However, if you haven’t sold your old home before you buy your new home, then you may have a difficult time selling or renting it out. You may be surprised to discover your old home might take longer to sell or rent out than anticipated.

If you own property that is more suitable for a family, like a single-family house, the best time to sell or rent it out is during late spring or summer. Families will be looking to move once their children are out of school for minimal disruption.

Every month your home goes unsold or unrented is costing you money.

After 20 years of being a landlord, I am picky about who I will rent to. Therefore, I will be taking my time. I’m also undecided on whether to rent out, sell, or keep our former home empty in this weak market. My gut instinct says to find great tenants and hold for the next 20 years.

I love our old home with panoramic ocean views. It’s the ideal work-from-home house. It also has a lot of sentimental value since we raised our kids in it for three years during the pandemic.

No More Surprising Costs After Buying A Home

Now that you’ve read this post, these surprising costs should no longer be surprises. You can now properly budget them into your home purchase costs.

A good rule of thumb is to budget 1% of the cost of your home in ongoing maintenance expenses. Homes need to be repainted, roofs need to be replaced, and water heaters tend to leak after 12-15 years.

You won’t face big home maintenance costs most years. But when it comes time to fix your home, you can draw on your home maintenance reserves to pay for them.

Ideally, you’ll befriend a trusty handyman or contractor who will be able to fix everything for you at a reasonable price. In addition, your guy will do some preventative maintenance before things get bad.

After more than two decade of homeownership, the most common surprise cost of owning a home is water damage. Be vigilant in clear gutters, drains, and clogged pipes. Inspect and fix weak spots in the roof. Check under your sink and kitchen cabinets to see if there are leaks.

Like cancer, the key is to detect the water problem as early as possible before things get really bad!

Related: All The Warning Signs Before Buying A House

Reader Questions And Suggestions

What are some other surprising costs of that come after you purchase a home? Let’s list them all out so that we are never blindsided.

To invest in real estate without all the hassle, check out Fundrise. Fundrise offers funds that mainly invest in residential and industrial properties in the Sunbelt, where valuations are lower and yields are higher.

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The post All The Stunning Prices That Come After A Residence Buy appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

An uncertain economic outlook has brought San Francisco’s real estate investment market to a near halt, but the sale of a luxury car dealership has been a source of much-needed optimism as the city begins to recover.

IndiGo Auto Group, a Houston-based network of high-end car brands, bought the former Mercedes-Benz showroom 500 Eighth Street in San Francisco for $60.2 million, marking one of the largest deals closed in the past year and earning it a 2023 CoStar Impact Award, as judged by real estate professionals familiar with the market.

The property, which was built in 2006 and is ready to move into, will soon be reopened as a Porsche dealership.

San Francisco’s retail market — particularly outside of its main Union Square shopping district — has long faced challenges that were exacerbated by the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020. The city’s bureaucracy and rising and high crime rate have turned investors away – high-profile tenants like Gap Inc. and Walgreens have closed more locations than opened.

Defying poor investor sentiment, the purchase of IndiGo meant an otherwise vacant retail lot would reopen as a new luxury auto dealership to revitalize the San Francisco street corner.

About the project: The nearly 91,200-square-foot building previously housed a Mercedes-Benz dealership until the location closed in mid-2021 and the luxury car brand moved to a new location in South San Francisco. The space is located in the Showplace Square neighborhood, which is home to numerous tech offices, including Airbnb, Asana, Zynga, Stripe, and Volta.

What the judges said: “The sale of the Mercedes-Benz dealership to another auto dealership is a positive development and will help preserve jobs and economic activity in San Francisco at a time when the local economy is struggling to bounce back to recover from the effects of the pandemic,” said CoStar Impact Award judge Mary Alam, also executive vice president at NAI Northern California. “Had Mercedes-Benz moved out and left the building empty, it would have been a disgrace to the region and would have also led to a decline in employment, economic activity and growth.”

You made it possible: Zach Haupert, Michael Sanberg and Trevor Gudim from Touchstone Commercial Partners represented the seller Rialto Capital Management in the transaction. Jeff Badstubner with JLL brokered it on behalf of the IndiGo Auto Group.

The post Buy of San Francisco Dealership a Uncommon Vibrant Spot in Metropolis’s Troubled Gross sales Market appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

Crown Electrokinetics Corp.

Los Angeles, California, Aug. 17, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Crown Electrokinetics Corp. (NASDAQ: CRKN) (“Crown” or the “Company”), a leading smart glass technology company, has received two purchase orders for its Smart Window Inserts.

The Smart Window Inserts will be delivered after Crown’s first-generation production line comes into operation this fall. The Inserts will be deployed in two buildings located in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Doug Croxall, CEO of Crown, “These purchase orders for our Smart Window Inserts are a confirmation of years of hard work by the entire team at Crown. While this represents the first purchase order of our Smart Window Inserts, we know they will not be the last. Crown has the only retrofit insert with dimmable smart glass technology, providing existing building owners with a solution that can affordably, effectively, and rapidly reduce their energy consumption levels.”

As part of Crown’s commitment to its vision, the Company is actively working to become a key ESG (“Environmental, Social and Governance”) supplier to US-based office buildings, by helping them retrofit their legacy infrastructure and assets to be environmentally responsible and energy efficient. Crown’s Smart Window Insert can lower the HVAC energy costs for building owners and help lower the building’s carbon footprint.

The recently announced Inflation Reduction Act will expand the tax incentives for retro-fitted energy improvements and has also now made them available to the Company’s REIT customers – further enhancing Crowns already significant value proposition. Other legislation, such as New York City’s Local Law 97 which targets a 40% reduction in building energy use levels by 2030, is compelling REITs to rapidly upgrade their building envelopes.

About Crown Electrokinetics
Crown is a smart glass technology company and the creator of DynamicTint We Make Your Glass Smarter. Originally invented by Hewlett-Packard, our technology allows any glass surface to transition between clear and dark in seconds. At the core of our technology is a thin film that is powered by electrically charged pigment which not only replaces common window tints but is also a more sustainable alternative to traditional window treatments. With its unique ability to be retrofitted to existing glass, DynamicTint offers myriad benefits related to reducing carbon emissions. The company is supported by a robust patent portfolio.

Story continues

Safe Harbor Statement: Statements in this news release may be “forward-looking statements”. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements that express our intentions, beliefs, expectations, strategies, predictions, or any other statements relating to our future activities or other future events or conditions. These statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about our business based, in part, on assumptions made by management. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may, and are likely to, differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in forward-looking statements due to numerous factors. Any forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this news release and Crown Electrokinetic Corporation undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this news release.

This press release does not constitute a public offer of any securities for sale. Any securities offered privately will not be or have not been registered under the Act and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration requirements.

Crown Electrokinetics

IR Email: info@crownek.com
Source: Crown Electrokinetics: www.crownek.com

The post Crown Electrokinetics Pronounces Preliminary Buy Orders for its Good Window Inserts™ to be Deployed in Two Buildings within the San Francisco Bay Space appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

A sparkling seven-story building on 12th Street could soon play a key role in not only getting homeless families into housing, but helping them avoid displacement outside of San Francisco.

Earlier this month, Mayor London Breed announced The City’s plans to buy City Gardens, a residential building South of Market that would provide permanent supportive housing to families experiencing homelessness.

If the Board of Supervisors approves the deal, it would be the first building The City has purchased and dedicated exclusively to families under Breed’s plan to add 1,500 units of permanent supportive housing to The City’s growing portfolio by June.

It’s long overdue, according to advocates and service providers for homeless families. Permanent supportive housing is a model that ensures tenants an affordable place to live, for as long as they would like, coupled with an array of social services such as mental health treatment.

For many families, permanent supportive housing can be preferable to options like rapid rehousing, a different support that provides short-term financial help to a person or family experiencing homelessness so that they can find a new home in the private market.

Rapid rehousing is intended as a quick fix that steps in when someone has an unexpected major issue, such as loss of a job or medical event that results in homelessness. While effective at mitigating homelessness in the near term, rapid rehousing has unintended consequences, advocates for homeless families point out.

Mary Kate Bacalao, director of external affairs and policy at Compass Family Services, said rapid rehousing can amount to “state-subsidized displacement.”

Because the financial assistance is temporary, it’s possible they could find a place in San Francisco but would be unable to pay for it once the money runs out, risking homelessness over again.

This issue is well-documented in high-cost housing markets in San Francisco. In 2018, the San Francisco Public Press reported most families that received rapid rehousing assistance were moving to more affordable housing markets throughout the Bay Area.

Rapid rehousing clients can end up as far away as Sacramento, according to Kyriell Noon, CEO of Hamilton Families, a nonprofit like Compass that connects families with rapid rehousing support. The distance makes it difficult to stay engaged with clients and ensure they’re connected to support services, Noon said. And, because people of color are disproportionately in need of housing support, the consequences are especially dramatic, Noon said.

“Rapid rehousing inadvertently is hastening the exodus of Black and brown low-income folks out of The City,” Noon said.

Advocates say rapid rehousing has its place, but it’s not the best fit for everyone. “The most vulnerable families need supportive housing,” Bacalao said.

And yet, in the absence of adequate permanent supportive housing, it’s the most vulnerable families that rise to the top of the priority list and thus are directed into rapid rehousing, Bacalao said. That’s why The City’s purchase of the building at 333 12th St. would be pivotal.

There’s a communal lounge and laundry room on every floor, an outdoor courtyard and even a place to store bicycles.

The building won’t come cheap — the proposed deal totals $145 million — but it’s essentially brand new, opening just last year. And it could be ready for new tenants in a matter of months.

Built as a co-living space, where single rooms are rented out and tenants share common spaces like kitchens, it’s replete with 200 units that The City views as a good fit for families experiencing homelessness.

And in San Francisco, there are hundreds of such families, often invisible because they’re living in cars or crashing on couches.

According to the most recent Point-in-Time Count, the biennial census of The City’s homeless population, there were 208 homeless families in 2019.

Advocates warn the actual number is probably much higher, as the Point-in-Time Count uses the narrow definition of homelessness set by the federal department of Housing and Urban Development.

Still, the 200 new units of supportive housing would be a welcome start.

“It’s not perfect, but it’s great and I’ll take it,” Noon said.

ashanks@sfexaminer.com

The post San Francisco plans to buy 200 models to deal with homeless households | The Fs appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

A sparkling seven-story building on 12th Street could soon play a key role in not only getting homeless families into housing, but helping them avoid displacement outside of San Francisco.

Earlier this month, Mayor London Breed announced the city’s plans to buy City Gardens, a residential building South of Market that would provide permanent supportive housing to families experiencing homelessness.

If the Board of Supervisors approved the deal, it would be the first building the city has purchased and dedicated exclusively to families under Breed’s plan to add 1,500 units of permanent supportive housing to the city’s growing portfolio by June.

It’s long overdue, according to advocates and service providers for homeless families. Permanent supportive housing is a model that ensures the tenant an affordable place to live, for as long as they would like, coupled with an array of social services like mental health treatment.

For many families, permanent supportive housing can be preferable to options like rapid rehousing, a different support that provides short-term financial help to a person or family experiencing homelessness so that they can find a new home in the private market.

Rapid rehousing is intended as a quick fix that steps in when someone has an unexpected major issue, such as loss of a job or medical event that results in homelessness. While effective at mitigating homelessness in the near term, advocates for homeless families point out rapid rehousing’s unintended consequences.

Mary Kate Bacalao, director of external affairs and policy at Compass Family Services, said rapid rehousing can amount to “state-subsidized displacement.”

Since the financial assistance is temporary, it’s possible they could find a place in San Francisco but would be unable to pay for it once the money runs out, risking homelessness all over again.

This issue is well-documented in high-cost housing markets in San Francisco. In 2018, the San Francisco Public Press reported most families that received Rapid Rehousing were moving to more affordable housing markets throughout the Bay Area.

For Hamilton Families – a nonprofit that, like Compass, connects families with rapid rehousing support – a rapid rehousing client can end up as far away as Sacramento, according to Kyriell Noon, CEO of Hamilton Families. It’s difficult to stay engaged with a client that’s so far away and ensure they’re connected to support services.

Because people of color are disproportionately in need of housing support, the consequences are especially dramatic.

“Rapid rehousing inadvertently is hastening the exodus of black and brown low-income folks out of the city,” Noon said.

Rapid rehousing has its place, but it’s not the best fit for everyone.

“The most vulnerable families need supportive housing,” Bacalao said.

And yet, in the absence of adequate permanent supportive housing, it’s the most vulnerable families that rise to the top of the priority list and thus are directed into Rapid Rehousing, Bacalao said.

That’s why the city’s purchase of the 12th Street building would be so pivotal.

There’s a communal lounge and laundry room on every floor, an outdoor courtyard, and even a place to store bicycles.

The building at 333 12th Street won’t come cheap – the proposed deal totals $145 million – but it’s essentially brand new, opening just last year.

And it could be ready for new tenants in a matter of months.

Built as a co-living space, where single rooms are rented out and tenants share common spaces like kitchens, it’s replete with 200 units of housing that the city views as a good fit for families experiencing homelessness.

And in San Francisco, there are hundreds of such families, often invisible because they’re living in cars or crashing on couches.

According to the most recent Point-in-Time Count, the biennial census of the city’s homeless population, there were 208 homeless families in 2019.

Advocates for the homeless warn that the actual number is probably much higher, as the Point-in-Time Count uses the narrow definition of homelessness set by the federal department of Housing and Urban Development.

Still, the 200 new units of supportive housing would be a welcome start.

“It’s not perfect, but it’s great and I’ll take it,” Noon said.

The post San Francisco plans to buy 200 items to accommodate homeless households appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

A sparkling seven-story building on 12th Street could soon play a key role in not only getting homeless families into housing, but helping them avoid displacement outside of San Francisco.

Earlier this month, Mayor London Breed announced the city’s plans to buy City Gardens, a residential building South of Market that would provide permanent supportive housing to families experiencing homelessness.

If the Board of Supervisors approved the deal, it would be the first building the city has purchased and dedicated exclusively to families under Breed’s plan to add 1,500 units of permanent supportive housing to the city’s growing portfolio by June.

It’s long overdue, according to advocates and service providers for homeless families. Permanent supportive housing is a model that ensures the tenant an affordable place to live, for as long as they would like, coupled with an array of social services like mental health treatment.

For many families, permanent supportive housing can be preferable to options like rapid rehousing, a different support that provides short-term financial help to a person or family experiencing homelessness so that they can find a new home in the private market.

Rapid rehousing is intended as a quick fix that steps in when someone has an unexpected major issue, such as loss of a job or medical event that results in homelessness. While effective at mitigating homelessness in the near term, advocates for homeless families point out rapid rehousing’s unintended consequences.

Mary Kate Bacalao, director of external affairs and policy at Compass Family Services, said rapid rehousing can amount to “state-subsidized displacement.”

Since the financial assistance is temporary, it’s possible they could find a place in San Francisco but would be unable to pay for it once the money runs out, risking homelessness all over again.

This issue is well-documented in high-cost housing markets in San Francisco. In 2018, the San Francisco Public Press reported most families that received Rapid Rehousing were moving to more affordable housing markets throughout the Bay Area.

For Hamilton Families – a nonprofit that, like Compass, connects families with rapid rehousing support – a rapid rehousing client can end up as far away as Sacramento, according to Kyriell Noon, CEO of Hamilton Families. It’s difficult to stay engaged with a client that’s so far away and ensure they’re connected to support services.

Because people of color are disproportionately in need of housing support, the consequences are especially dramatic.

“Rapid rehousing inadvertently is hastening the exodus of black and brown low-income folks out of the city,” Noon said.

Rapid rehousing has its place, but it’s not the best fit for everyone.

“The most vulnerable families need supportive housing,” Bacalao said.

And yet, in the absence of adequate permanent supportive housing, it’s the most vulnerable families that rise to the top of the priority list and thus are directed into Rapid Rehousing, Bacalao said.

That’s why the city’s purchase of the 12th Street building would be so pivotal.

There’s a communal lounge and laundry room on every floor, an outdoor courtyard, and even a place to store bicycles.

The building at 333 12th Street won’t come cheap – the proposed deal totals $145 million – but it’s essentially brand new, opening just last year.

And it could be ready for new tenants in a matter of months.

Built as a co-living space, where single rooms are rented out and tenants share common spaces like kitchens, it’s replete with 200 units of housing that the city views as a good fit for families experiencing homelessness.

And in San Francisco, there are hundreds of such families, often invisible because they’re living in cars or crashing on couches.

According to the most recent Point-in-Time Count, the biennial census of the city’s homeless population, there were 208 homeless families in 2019.

Advocates for the homeless warn that the actual number is probably much higher, as the Point-in-Time Count uses the narrow definition of homelessness set by the federal department of Housing and Urban Development.

Still, the 200 new units of supportive housing would be a welcome start.

“It’s not perfect, but it’s great and I’ll take it,” Noon said.

The post San Francisco plans to buy 200 models to deal with homeless households appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KRON) — This week, San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to acquire Gotham Hotel near City Hall to convert into permanent supportive housing (PSH).

Last year, District 5 Supervisor Dean Preston called for the site to be acquired for supportive housing and has been working with the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing to finalize the acquisition.

“This type of acquisition is absolutely essential and we are thrilled to see it come to fruition,” said Preston.

“With 114 large units all with private bathrooms, 835 Turk is an excellent building for permanent supportive housing that will help people move from homelessness to housing with the services they need.”

Sports betting vote could help end homelessness crisis in California

The acquisition of the site at 835 Turk Street will add 114 new PSH units — building on Mayor London Breed’s goal of creating 1,500 PSH units by July.

According to the Mayor’s Office, the City has acquired 828 PSH units to date.

“The City is leveraging unprecedented resources of local, state, and federal funding that provide the unique opportunity for significant investments in new permanent housing,” said a press release.

The building is located in District 5 and will provide affordable homes with onsite social services to help tenants gain and maintain housing and stability.

According to the City, the site will have staff, professional property management, and support services onsite.

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“We know housing stability is the solution to homelessness,” said San Francisco Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing executive director, Shireen McSpadden.

“As we continue to address our city’s homelessness crisis, implementing the Mayor’s ambitious Homelessness Recovery Plan, the largest expansion of Supportive Housing in over 20 years, is foundational to making a life-changing difference in the lives of people struggling to exit homelessness.”

The Turk Street site adds to the City’s three recent PSH acquisitions:

• 5630 Mission Streeta 52-room motel formerly known as the Mission Inn, will provide
  Affordable units with onsite social services to help Transitional Age Youth gain and maintain
  housing and stability.
• 3061 16th Sta 25-room hotel formerly known as the Eula Hotel, will provide Transitional
  Age Youth (18-24) affordable units with onsite social services to help tenants gain and maintain
  housing and stability.
• 1321 Mission Streeta 160-unit building formerly known as the Panoramic, will provide
  affordable units with onsite social services to help adults and families gain and maintain housing
  and stability.

The post San Francisco to buy Gotham Resort to deal with metropolis’s homeless appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

SAN JOSE (KPIX) – Mobile home parks in the Bay Area are affordable but also very vulnerable to soaring property prices. This has led some South Bay RV owners to scramble to take control of their home.

Two years ago, homeowners at the Westwinds RV park in San Jose received a letter from the park administration stating that property owners would “not give rental renewals” and may “displace over 720 households and over 1,600 residents.”

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“We were alarmed,” said homeowner Patrick Grimes. “We said, ‘Hey, we have to do something to keep our park going.'”

“This is the last thing you would like to do to remove this from our inventory. Because we don’t have enough affordable housing at all, ”said homeowner Jim Conova

RV owners are in a difficult position because they own a home but not the land below. Moving out would also mean moving. So Grimes and a group of residents formed a homeowners group called the Westwinds Residents Organization.

The group submitted a petition to the town hall and won in March 2020. The city council unanimously decided to create a mobile home zone not just for west winds, but for every mobile home park in the city.

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“What we’re looking for is the security of knowing that our houses aren’t sold out among us,” Grimes said.

But knowing that the city’s protection could one day be undone, the Westwinds homeowners are now working to set up a cooperative that would buy the park and make the residents co-owners of the land themselves.

Paul Bradley runs a nonprofit called Resident Owned Communities USA that helps RV owners set up cooperatives.

“When the homeowners move up and buy the community, they remove this property from the speculative real estate market and remove the pursuit of profit from running the community,” Bradley said.

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The Westwinds Co-op’s efforts still have a long way to go in building membership and attracting investors. But they hope that one day no one can take their home away from them.

The post Residents of San Jose Cellular Dwelling Park Create Co-Op to Buy Park Land – CBS San Francisco appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.