Summary
The current strategy in California is to eliminate single-family zoning and replace it with high-density, stack-and-pack apartment units and condominiums throughout the state. This strategy, while promoting high-density housing, also raises significant concerns about its potential impact on housing affordability, a matter of great concern for all stakeholders.
California has established a top-down approval process, removing authorities from municipalities and confining them to ministerial approval rights, subject to state mandates.
NIMBYs (Not in my back yard) beware: Your days are numbered, and they have gone into the sunset, never to return. NIMBYs are individuals or groups who oppose new development in their local area, often due to concerns about its impact on their quality of life or property values.
Article:
This new law, as amended by California State Government Code, sections 65852. 28 and 66499. 1, relates to land use.
On A Federal Level: A Short History Lesson
The new methodology is an extension of the federal legislation, Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing, issued under the Obama administration.
The AFFH regulation, initiated by President Obama, profoundly impacted the suburban landscape. Its objective was to foster the development of progressive urban mini-cities and transition them into suburban areas. This entails suburbs absorbed by larger cities, subject to federal zoning and development control mandates.
The AFFH regulation focused on eliminating single-family zones and promoting the construction ofmedium- to high-density housing, thereby reshaping suburban areas into mini-urban, downtown-style developments. This effort led to low-income individuals and those from less desirable areas relocating to the suburbs.
AFFH works in conjunction with the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) through its Community Development program, holding up the issuance of Block Grants. Suburbs are prohibited from receiving millions of dollars in HUD grants unless they eliminate single-family zoning, install low- and moderate-cost housing, and agree to consolidate and densify commercial and residential districts, such as stack-and-pack neighborhoods in urban areas.
Non-compliance will result in the withholding of highway funds. Any objections by local municipalities could result in lawsuits against suburban municipal leaders for alleged discrimination, potentially brought by civil rights groups or the federal government.
Then, with President Trump in 2016, the process was put on hold. However, when President Biden took office, it was reactivated and accelerated.
State Level: California
The restructuring of land use and development control is a pivotal issue. It necessitated passing laws that redefine who is responsible for the zoning and development processes. This shift in power dynamics is a critical factor in transforming the housing landscape, and its significance cannot be overstated, underlining the gravity of the situation.
Forced to replace local municipal control with state-level bureaucracies is the key to destroying the historic suburban lifestyle, and it appears to be the California legislative objective patterned after AFFH.
The California Legislature's actions have significantly altered the landscape for local municipalities. The passage of multiple bills has effectively stripped these municipalities of their rights to approve land use and housing development projects. Instead, these rights are transferred to a state-level bureaucracy, leaving local municipalities only ministerial approval rights. This shift has a profound impact on the housing landscape, marking a significant change in the traditional approval process. This change means that the local communities have limited say in the type and scale of housing developments in their areas, which could lead to a dramatic shift in the housing landscape, underscoring the urgency of the situation and the potential loss of local control.
The competition between two different bureaucracies (state and local) for approval has created chaos for buildings attempting to get their projects approved. Both state and local governments are filled with public employee labor union members who hold monopoly powers and are reluctant to relinquish them, regardless of the cost and disruption to the real estate development community. This competition underscores the challenges faced by real estate developers in navigating the approval process.
California planned the control and reformulation of neighborhoods by elected and unelected state-level bureaucrats. The targeted elimination of Single-family homes is to be replaced by high-density stack-and-pack housing.
SB 1123: The law took effect July 1, 2025. This law has significant implications for property owners, real estate developers, municipal officials, legal professionals, and housing advocates. It introduces changes to the rules for land use and housing development in California, with the potential to create more affordable housing options and address the housing crisis.
The initial law in 2023 was SB 684, but it has been updated with SB 1123. The new law expands the Starter Home Revitalization Act, facilitating the construction of smaller, more affordable homes. Some of the conditions specified in SB 684 have been modified, enabling even greater density on small lots.
Bill Text - SB-1123 Planning and zoning: subdivisions: ministerial review.
Senate Bill 684 | Los Angeles City Planning
The effect is to create a process that streamlines approvals for starter homes in infill developments of 10 homes or fewer in multi-family zones. The new law amends the Subdivision Map Act by making it faster and easier to split a single parcel into multiple, smaller parcels for the development of mini homes.
The law now allows vacant lots in single-family zones to be split into smaller parcels, with the intention of promoting low-cost housing for traditionally excluded lower- and middle-income families and communities of color. This includes freestanding homes, high-density stack-and-pack apartments, and condos (a form of ownership in tenancies in common).
Site Requirements: Proposed to be subdivided
Zoned multifamily residential
One and a half acres or less
Legal parcel located within an incorporated area, which includes some portion of an urbanized area.
An urbanized area or urban cluster in a county with a population greater than 600,000
Substantially qualified by urban uses.
The site must not be a home that requires demolition or alteration.
Vacant, uninhabitable, and abandoned homes are defined as vacant parcels.
Housing is subject to a recorded covenant, ordinance, or law that restricts the rent or sales price to levels affordable to people and families with low, very low, or extremely low incomes.
Housing is subject to any form of rent or sales price control through the valid exercise of a local public entity's police power.
Housing occupied by tenants within the five years preceding the date of the application, including housing that has been demolished or that tenants have vacated before the submission of the application for a development permit.
If the land parcel is larger than 5 acres, it does not qualify. And smaller lots, such as one and a half acres, also qualify.
The newly created parcel must be at least1,200 square feet, unless the local agency allows a smaller size.
Under defined circumstances, the newly created parcels are at least 600 feet in length.
Public utilities, including water and municipal sewer systems, must serve the parcel.
The new units built on eligible parcels cannot exceed an average of 1,750 square feet of net area.
The proposed subdivision will not result in any existing dwelling unit being alienable separate from the title to any other existing dwelling unit on the lot.
Prohibits the local agency from imposing a height limit on the newly created structure.
SB 684: Older brother of SB 1123: Projects may be of various ownership models
Fee-simple ownership.
Common interest developments such as condos and row homes
Housing cooperatives (stock cooperatives where a corporation and the occupants own shares in the corporation and a usage agreement for the unit), as defined in Section 817 of the Civil Code.
Community Land Trust.
The housing project may form a homeowners association, if required by the Davis-Sterling Common Interest Development Act.
Ministerial Approval Process:
The expedited process requires the applicant to submit the proposed project to the local agency for review and approval.
The local agency has 60 days to approve or deny the application, providing specific reasons.
If the local agency does not respond within the specified time limit, then the project is deemed approved.
The local agency may impose objective zoning, subdivision, and design standards.
SB 684: Prohibits
Precludes development densities deemed appropriate to accommodate housing for lower-income.
Precludes required setbacks between units.
Precludes the requirement of covered parking.
Final Comments:
This is an overview article and remains incomplete unless the reader takes the time to read the specific bills, SB 684 and SB 1123. Also, interested parties must become familiar with the application and approval process in specific geographic locations. Additionally, property owners and real estate practitioners should consult with qualified consultants specializing in low- and moderate-income housing.
My comments above are subject to review in light of the two new laws and the specific application procedures established for separate municipalities.
I have also enclosed a template application review checklist for the reader to become familiar with the process.