New laws intended to grow California’s housing supply have been enacted at an unprecedented pace since 2020, with many taking away the power cities had to block new homes within their boundaries.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed over 60 new housing bills in 2025 alone, ramping up pressure to ease a dearth in supply that has locked many people out of the state’s housing market. In late 2025, potential homeowners needed an average $221,000 annual income to buy a median-priced home. Rents have risen as well: In Long Beach, a 1,200 square-foot apartment now goes for over $3,100 — a 25% rise since 2019.
Newsom has been blunt in calling out specific cities that resist more housing — like Huntington Beach’s “pathetic NIMBY behavior,” he said in December — and has threatened lawsuits and other penalties on cities big and small…