When the housing market boomed in 2000 increasing the price of homes, local government impact fees increased as well. With our current economic downturn, our fees have remained the same, meaning that we have now reached the point where the price of a new home includes fees totaling more than $60,000.  When added to the cost of a home, these fees price many Californians interested in becoming homeowners right out of the market. Over the past three years, these fees have generated more than $1 billion in revenue for local governments, directly impacting transportation, schools, and public safety in new communities. While it is important to ensure that these government services are provided, it is also important to ensure that homes remain affordable for the families and first-time homebuyers who will use these services.

When the market slows, as our current situation has shown, the per-unit fee burden becomes an anchor that weighs down consumers and the industry, threatening local government.  The trends are partly due to the cyclical nature of the housing market; however they are also exacerbated by land-use policy decisions.    Fees and other regulatory hurdles combined with higher inventories and price stabilization have slowed the market to the point where jobs are being lost, impacting local families.  Increased regulatory costs and bureaucratic hurdles will decrease the production of well-planned communities and reduce revenues for local governments as we are seeing in headlines across the country.