Jakki PadillaAccessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) which include converted garages, basement units, and backyard tiny homes, have been touted for adding relatively inexpensive housing stock. Yet the realities don’t align with this promise. ADUs typically have lifespans of only 30-50 years, requiring replacement sooner than traditional homes.
ADUs are not a viable solution to combat homelessness, nor are they preventative—so find a better solution, Gavin Newsom.
While it may seem pessimistic to rule ADUs out of the equation, the scale of our housing crisis demands holistic thinking and a diversity of potential remedies. An overreliance on ADUs, tiny homes and currently flawed mobile home models alone will not resolve the crude issue.
State and local leaders must drive innovation, exploring new construction methods, zoning reform and much more. Their small footprints also raise questions about sustainability and the ability to accommodate families. Like – how can a family live in such a small and condensed space?
The tiny house movement emerged as another well-meaning but fundamentally flawed concept. Their practicality is doubtful. The availability of land in urban areas is extremely limited, restricting tiny home developments. This regulates such homes to rural exurbs- impractical for most Californians’ work and life needs.
Locally, tiny homes are not accessible to own in Santa Ana or even in Orange County itself.
The “tiny home” initiatives seem to only take effect in big counties such as Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Jose County.
Whenever I log into Zillow, I think about the despair in the eyes of people in the same age range as me as they doom scroll through homes they can’t afford. Most of us continuously filter out to homes for less than $500,000 to catch a glimpse of hope. It is no surprise to only find mobile homes sold but not any equitable single-family homes. Until now I had learned about how little help there is for mobile home buyers through the Fair Housing Application (FHA) and a private lender.
The maximum amount you can take out is $93,000 which sounds like a lot at first, but what’s not so apparent is that the buyers have to put down more money to hit the closing cost.
Lenders such as banks tend to be hesitant about putting money down for a manufactured home due to the immediate depreciation of one whereas a house appreciates over time.
The costs of repairs for a mobile home also tend to rack up the price of owning it, and finding a repairman who works on manufactured homes is a whole different gamble in itself.
The “tiny homes” initiatives seem to only take effect in big counties such as Los Angeles, San Diego and San Jose County. Whenever I log into Zillow, I think about the despair in the eyes of people in the same age range as me as they doom scroll through homes they can’t afford. Most of us continuously filter out to homes for less than $500,000 to catch a glimpse of hope. It is no surprise to only find mobile homes sold but not any equitable single-family homes. Until now I had learned about how little help there is for mobile home buyers through the Fair Housing Application (FHA) and a private lender.
The maximum amount you can take out is $93,000 which sounds like a lot at first, but what’s not so apparent is that the buyers have to put down more money to hit the closing cost. Lenders such as banks tend to be hesitant about putting money down for a manufactured home due to the immediate depreciation of one whereas a house appreciates over time. The costs of repairs for a mobile home also tend to rack up the price of owning it, and finding a repairman who works on manufactured homes is a whole different gamble in itself.
Newsom should put on his big-boy government pants and propose a bill to either limit the number of short-term rentals or ban them as Santa Ana has. Our local government should learn a few things from other cities and promote rent-controlled apartments as they do in New York.
Affordable housing is a human rights issue; half-measures relegate too many Californians to the streets. We deserve better answers that match the magnitude of this problem.
