Thousands of REALTORS® Converged on the California State Capitol for Legislative Day 2024
Pictured: SCCAOR Members
Every year thousands of REALTORS® converge on the State Capitol for the California Association of REALTORS® Legislative Day. Legislative Day is an opportunity for REALTORS® to meet with their Legislators and voice their stance on important policies that directly affect private property rights and homeownership.
Pictured: Speaker of the California State Assembly Robert Rivas & 2024 SCCAOR President Michelle Perry
Achieving the goal of homeownership in California continues to be challenging for working Californians, especially first-time and first-generation homebuyers. During the meetings, Santa Clara County Association of REALTORS® members voiced their concerns over onerous taxation barriers. According to the Board of Equalization, there were at least 884 special taxes imposed on properties in 2022 also known as parcel taxes.
It is imperative that the Legislature consider that not all taxes are the same. It’s this differentiation that will distribute tax burdens placed solely on homeowners to perhaps a larger swath of the community. Continuing to impose new taxes on homeownership will make buying and maintaining a home even more unaffordable when only 15% of California families can afford a median-priced home. As homeowners struggle with rising costs they should not be viewed as a public piggybank for the community.
Pictured: 2021 SCCAOR Past President Doug Goss
As REALTORS® we believe all Californians deserve the opportunity for homeownership. California has not constructed enough housing units to meet its demand driving up the costs. California needs between 2.5 and 3.5 million additional housing units by 2030 to keep up with its growing population. To achieve this Legislators should end frivolous anti-development lawsuits, prevent corporations from using government funds to purchase affordable housing, expand priority permitting for sewer and water services, and expedite permitting for construction of entry-level ownership housing.
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