“It’s Not Forcing Anybody to Do Anything”: How a California Law Is Opening Church Land to Affordable Homes

• California’s SB 4 lets religious institutions build 100 per cent affordable housing ‘by right’
• A Laguna Beach church applied to build 44 affordable homes in March 2025
• About 80 Los Angeles congregations were exploring housing
• Researchers estimate 171,000 acres of nonprofit and religious land could be unlocked

In February 2025 Shelterforce’s reporting fellow Frances Nguyen looked at how the “Yes In God’s Backyard” movement was turning church land into a housing resource. At its centre was California’s SB 4, passed in 2023, which allows nonprofit colleges and religious institutions to build fully affordable housing “by right”, without going through discretionary local approvals. The homes must stay affordable for 55 years if rented, or 45 years if sold.

In Laguna Beach, Neighborhood Congregational Church filed an application in March 2025 to build 44 affordable homes on its property. Its pastor, Rodrick Echols, explained why: “Affordable housing is not being built at the rate needed in California because of the complex, lengthy, and costly entitlement process. SB 4 presents an unexpected opportunity.”

In Los Angeles about 80 congregations had begun exploring housing. Mahdi Manji, director of policy at the Inner City Law Center, said the law changes the balance of power: “If the project meets the requirement set in SB 4, then the city can no longer deny it; they have to approve it.” But he stressed that it is voluntary. “It’s not forcing anybody to do anything. But it is creating an option.”

The idea is spreading. New York was considering a Faith-Based Affordable Housing Act that could produce 60,000 homes over a decade, and Atlanta and San Antonio had comparable initiatives. In Hawaii, where about 3,000 acres of faith-based land exist, the Rev Josh Hayashi of Mission Management Company put the stakes simply: “I’d rather keep our young people here than preserve the character of the neighborhood.” The Terner Center for Housing Innovation estimates that 171,000 acres of land owned by nonprofits and religious institutions could be unlocked.

Hayashi’s point about keeping young people at home will resonate in Jamaica, where some young adults struggle to afford a home near where they grew up. Jamaican churches hold land in almost every district. A law or policy that made small, fully affordable church housing schemes simpler to approve could help young families stay in their communities. For diaspora congregations in California and New York, SB 4-style projects are also a model to watch and share with home churches.

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