New San Diego housing laws: top changes 2022 are coming your way.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The City of San Diego will create new ordinances and regulations in response to the new California SB 9 law.
- California Senate Bill 9 (SB 9) law took effect on January 1st. Making it easier for single-family residential homeowners to split their lot in two to develop up to four housing units.
- New ordinances and regulations proposed by the City of San Diego will affect small “Granny Flats”.
- San Diego’s Mayor proposes a “Homes for All of Us” program to increase city housing.
- Opponents plan to lobby against these changes and seek exceptions to the SB 9 law.
- San Diego passed a “Bonus ADU” ordinance in 2020 allowing an extra housing unit for every rent-restricted affordable ADU property.
- San Diego developers are exempt from paying fees for nearby infrastructure projects on the first two ADUs they build.
- New California SB 10 law allowing building up to 10 housing units in urban transit centers is optional. The City of San Diego proposes to use this law to develop more housing units.
San Diego Housing Laws: Top Changes 2022
The San Diego Union-Tribune published a story on January 15, 2022, explaining “Housing Reforms and Changes to Granny Flats Heading to San Diego Council”. It explains a package of new regulation changes. These include:
Mayor Todd Gloria calls this package “Homes for All of Us”. Proposed changes include the new California housing law SB 9 which came into effect on January 1st.
The most controversial aspect of this proposal revolves around “Granny Flats”, also called Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU). Critics claim that in 2020 the City of San Diego went too far by approving a “bonus” ADU for every rent-restricted affordable ADU property owners build. This opened the door for adding multiple ADUs on single-family lots.
A community group calling itself “Neighbors for a Better San Diego” lobbied against the bonus ADU program for the past several months. Yet, city planning officials only propose a small rollback of ADUs with no change to the bonus ADU program.
Some city council members want increased housing to combat a statewide shortage in affordable housing. Slowing down the city’s efforts to solve the current housing crisis is not the answer.
“Developers are now exempt from paying fees for nearby infrastructure projects on the first two ADUs they build” Yet, they will pay the fees for any additional ADUs of at least 750 square feet.
Infrastructure projects are “fundamental facilities and systems supporting the sustainable functionality of households” like:
- Roads;
- Highways;
- Sewer systems;
- Water distribution;
- Transportation hubs;
- Electrical power distribution; and
- Telecommunications.
California SB 9 Law
The new SB 9 law allows up to four units to be built on qualifying lots. However, the city now claims that homeowners taking advantage of SB 9 can’t use the city’s bonus ADU program. Also, they must provide a parking spot and pay developer fees for the third and fourth units on their single-family lot.
The Union-Tribune also published a story on January 14th explaining “How New 2022 Real Estate Laws Affect San Diego Landlords and Homeowners”.
The story claims that the costs are too high for individual property owners to develop additional units on their lot In addition, SB 9’s requirement to live in one of the units for at least three years makes it unfeasible. Thus, housing experts “strongly doubt” many will be developed.
28,500 San Diego County Lots Feasible for Lot Split and Adding Up to 4 Housing Units
The UC Berkeley Terner Center study only found 28,500 lots in San Diego County as “feasible” for a lot splitting and development of three or four units. That’s after the study evaluated “398,500 single-family lots in San Diego County considered eligible for lot splitting and developing of up to three more units under SB 9”.
The 28,500 San Diego County lots were determined after the Terner Center did a feasibility study regarding the rental market conditions after development to earn a profit.
Also, some California cities are drafting ordinances to get around the SB 9 law by requiring stricter design standards to split and develop lots. However, these will be challenged in the courts.
Another way around SB 9 is to expand or create new Historic Districts which are exempt from SB 9. An example is South Park in San Diego declared a historic district to prevent SB 9 developments. Yet, cities have the power to apply SB 9 to historical districts if they choose.
What Recent Blog Posts Say About SB 9 and San Diego County
Yet, a recent blog post by the SoCal Lifestyle Realty found ways for San Diego County homeowners with qualifying lots (at least 2,400 square feet) to build duplexes and granny flats cheaply. Homeowners thinking of developing Granny Flats and/or duplexes on their single-family lots should view this post titled: “How Californians Can Build 2 Duplexes on One Lot in 2022”.
Also, read our recent blog post titled: “How to Develop 28,500 Lots in San Diego County in 2022”. It explains how the Terner Center study made its forecast. Also, the SB 9 law requirements for single-family lots to qualify for a split and development for up to four housing units including two duplexes.
In addition, the City of San Diego has 133,000 eligible lots, but the Terner Center only recognized 7,000 lots as feasible to develop 13,000 new housing units.
SB 9 also requires that local governments provide fast approval of the splits and developments without reviews and hearings.
Senate Bill 10
Another new California law that went into effect on January 1st is Senate Bill 10. This law allows (does not mandate as SB 9 does) cities to adopt a policy allowing up to 10 housing units in urban areas near public transit centers.
This new law allows developers to get around the strict California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)to prevent environmental reviews which delay projects for years. Since this is optional, some cities may not adopt it.
However, San Diego is a city stating publicly it will use this new law to build more housing. San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria publicly stated that SB 10 makes it easier to build apartments lose to mass transit centers.
San Diego Housing Laws: Top Changes 2022 – Conclusion
Expect several new San Diego housing laws: top changes in 2022. These include:
- Creating new city ordinances and regulations in response to the new California SB 9 law;
- SB 9 makes it easier for homeowners to split their minimum 2,400 square foot lots into two and develop up to four housing units;
- City of San Diego small “Granny Flats” will be regulated;
- San Diego’s Mayor proposed “Homes for All of Us” program will increase city housing;
- Opponents are lobbying against these changes and are seeking exceptions to the SB 9 law;
- San Diego’s 2020 “Bonus ADU” ordinance allowing an extra housing unit for every rent-restricted affordable ADU property owners build will be challenged;
- Currently, San Diego developers are exempt from paying fees for nearby infrastructure projects on the first two ADUs they build on a specific property; and
- California’s new SB 10 law allows developing up to 10 housing units in urban transit centers will be used by the City of San Diego to develop more housing units.
Thinking of Developing New San Diego Housing Units?
SoCal Lifestyle Realty can locate suitable land in San Diego County which can qualify for SB 10 developments. They can also consult with current homeowners about developing their qualified lots.
Contact them now to take advantage of these new state housing laws and City of San Diego proposed ordinances and regulations to stimulate more housing.
Need Property Management Services for Your San Diego County Rentals?
WeLease Property Management can service all landlords and owners of housing rentals. Our services include single-family home rentals, duplexes, and larger multi-family rentals including large apartment complexes.
Contact us to learn more about our professional property management services.
Steven Rich, MBA – Guest Blogger
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