New Report Reaffirms California’s Housing Woes

California residents in search of affordable homeownership are facing significant difficulties in their quest, according to a draft report issued by the state’s Department of Housing and Community Development.

The report determined that the state’s homeownership rates are now at their lowest levels since the 1940s. Much of this problem is blamed on California’s housing production, which fell more than 100,000 new homes short of demand during the last decade, and inventory shortages continue to limit affordability opportunities. And renting is hardly a viable option for those trying to saving money for a home: the report concluded that one-third of the state’s renters spend more than half their income to cover their housing expenses.

“What the report tries to get at is that the facts on the ground for a typical California family are really as bad as they’ve ever been in the state’s history,” said Ben Metcalf, director of the Department of Housing and Community Development, in a Los Angeles Times interview.