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On Monday, June 30, 2025, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law two bills, AB 130 and SB 131, which provide new exemptions from, and streamlines the process, under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). AB 130 creates a statutory exemption for qualifying infill housing projects, streamlines the CEQA review process for residential projects in the coastal zone, and provides procedural changes to the administrative review process to prevent unnecessary delays for new development projects. SB 131 focuses on accelerating public interest projects, such as clean water infrastructure, park and trail projects, and community support facility projects, by creating new exemption categories and streamlines processes for projects that would otherwise be CEQA-exempt but for a single condition. Both bills also include non-CEQA related provisions which seek to further support infill and public interest development.Continue Reading New CEQA Exemptions in 2025: Streamlining Housing & Infrastructure Development in California

On June 16, 2025, the San Diego City Council voted 5-4 to cap the number of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) that can be built on single-family lots. The decision reverses the City’s 2020 implementation of a program allowing developers to build a nearly unlimited number of ADUs—a robust incentive previously heralded as a solution to the City’s burgeoning housing affordability crisis. This program rollback reflects local jurisdictions struggles in addressing the lack of affordable housing supply and meeting Housing Element requirements while facing stark community opposition to high-density development.Continue Reading San Diego ADU Incentive Rollback Sheds Light on California Housing Woes

In light of the ongoing devastation wrought by the numerous wildfires plaguing Los Angeles County, California Governor Gavin Newsom has declared a state of emergency[1] and taken immediate action in an attempt to allow Angelenos to rebuild efficiently and effectively. One such action was the issuance of Executive Order (EO) N-4-25 on January 12th to temporarily suspend two time-intensive environmental laws.[2] In response, the City of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued her own executive order (Emergency Executive Order No. 1 [LA EEO1]) just one day later to “clear the way for Los Angeles residents to rapidly rebuild the homes they lost.”[3]Continue Reading State and Local Executive Orders Suspend Time-Consuming Permitting and Review Requirements for Rebuilding Los Angeles

As devastating wildfires displace thousands in Los Angeles County, Governor Newsom has declared a state of emergency. In the wake of this crisis, California’s price-gouging laws impose strict limits on rental price increases to prevent exploitation of displaced individuals.Continue Reading Protecting Against Residential Price Gouging During the Los Angeles Wildfires

Earlier this year, our article in the Spring 2024 issue of NAIOP Commercial Real Estate Development Magazine touched on some of the challenges of and tools for adapting underutilized commercial spaces and property for residential redevelopment, including California state laws such as Senate Bill (SB) 6, the “Middle Class Housing Act of 2022” and Assembly Bill (AB) 2011, the “Affordable Housing and High Road Jobs Act of 2022.”Continue Reading State of Conversion: Update on Adaptive Reuse and Conversion Legislation

As the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) continues to expand its jurisdictional reach, investors, property owners, and landlords should be aware of a growing focus on real estate transactions. Bridging a perceived gap between CFIUS’ mandate to safeguard U.S. national security and foreign investment in the U.S. real estate market, the U.S. Department of Treasury recently issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would strengthen CFIUS’ jurisdiction over real estate transactions. Specifically, the NPRM would greatly expand the list of military installations that could raise national security concerns, empowering CFIUS to review transactions involving the surrounding real estate; and expand the term “military installation” to encompass a larger number of sensitive facilities. These proposed changes are in response to a recent comprehensive assessment conducted by the Department of Defense regarding its military installations, and reflect the perception that real estate transactions in close proximity to sensitive USG facilities may convey strategic advantages to U.S. adversaries.Continue Reading Soil and Security: The Broadening Scope of CFIUS in Real Estate Transactions

To address the housing crisis in California, Senate Bill 684 (SB 684), passed in 2023 but effective as of July 1, 2024, aims to simplify the approval process for small-scale for-sale housing projects, facilitate a quicker development process, and help to alleviate the state’s housing shortage. Specifically, SB 684 mandates local agencies to ministerially approve proposed subdivisions for housing projects that result in 10 or fewer parcels, provided they meet specific criteria.[1] Applications for up to 10 units as part of a housing development on lots subdivided using this process and for building permits for construction of the units are also ministerial.[2] This streamlined, CEQA-exempt approval process applies to tract maps on lots zoned for multifamily residential development, no larger than 5 acres, substantially surrounded by qualified urban uses[3] and “infill” sites.Continue Reading Big Streamlining for Small Subdivision Developers

Until recently, local policies on homelessness have been guided by two controversial rulings from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals: Martin v. Boise (9th Cir. 2019) 920 F.3d 584 and Johnson v. City of Grants Pass (9th Cir. 2022) 50 F.4th 787.[1] However, the Supreme Court’s decision in City of Grants Pass v. Johnson (2024) 603 U.S. ____, is likely to transform local jurisdictions’ policy approaches to managing homelessness. In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court upheld the city’s ban on camping and parking overnight on public property.Continue Reading Supreme Court Holds That the Eighth Amendment Does Not Prevent Enforcement of Local Camping Bans, Authorizing a Significant Shift in Local Policies on Homelessness

New York City’s rent-related laws have once again survived judicial scrutiny, and evaded Supreme Court review. In 74 Pinehurst LLC v. New York, a group of New York City landlords (“Petitioners”) filed suit in the District Court for the Eastern District of New York against the City and State of New York, the State Division of Housing and Community Renewal, New York City’s Rent Guidelines Board, and multiple state and New York City officials (“Respondents”), seeking a declaration that New York City’s Rent Stabilization Law, as amended in 2019 (“RSL”), violates the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution. Respondents moved to dismiss, which the Eastern District Court granted. On appeal, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the motion to dismiss, and on February 20, 2024, the Supreme Court denied Petitioners’ petition for certiorari, declining to review the RSL.Continue Reading SCOTUS Declines to Review New York City’s Rent Stabilization Law