Approximately 35% of Americans are likely to lose their homes in the near future if the government fails to intervene. Meanwhile, history has taught us that Wall Street thrives in times like these and is ready to grab up our land and homes when the foreclosure moratorium is lifted. To prevent Wall Street firms from creating artificial scarcities like they did in 2008 by buying thousands of homes and keeping them vacant, Sen. Nancy Skinner introduced SB 1079 last year to reduce land grabs resulting from foreclosure auctions.
We helped add a significant new section to the bill that gives it some actual teeth, and it could be a huge win for tenants, land trusts, local governments, and real estate cooperatives. In brief, if a home is not purchased at auction by someone who will be living in the home (i.e., it’s purchased by profiteers who plan to flip it or manage it as a rental), then there will now be a 45-day hold period in which tenants, potential owner-occupants, nonprofits, cooperatives, and others can purchase the property by either matching or exceeding the auction’s winning bid!
But now, we need to fund SB 1079.
The California Community Land Trust Network is a coalition of more than 30 community land trusts throughout California, and they're fighting to fully fund the Home for Homeowners, Not Corporation Act. We've signed on to their demand because we believe that homes are for communities, not corporations. We're demanding a minimum investment of $103.5 million to support the launch of SB 1079 by funding land trusts and allied groups to purchase homes that are in foreclosure.
To support this demand, please share out the California Community Land Trust Network's press release and sign on here!
Spread the word!
Sample social media post:
Gov Newsom signed SB 1079 to help fight corporate land grabs! Follow @theselc to learn how the community can outbid real estate investors: https://www.theselc.org/homes_for_communities
Recording of Event:
Check out the recording of our Know Your SB 1079 Rights workshop here:
For updates on our housing and policy work, sign up below.
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