Housing — Ahead on Market-Rate, Far Behind on Affordable
active• burlingame
Burlingame has made meaningful progress on its RHNA obligation of 3,257 units by 2031 — but that progress masks a deep imbalance. The city has approved nearly 40% of its total RHNA units, but almost all are above-moderate income housing — it has permitted only about 12 to 13% of its very-low and low-income RHNA targets so far. The pattern is familiar across the Bay Area: market-rate projects are financed and built far faster than deeply affordable ones. Roughly 40,000 affordable units statewide are "shovel-ready" but stuck in financing and pipeline limbo — and Burlingame's affordable shortfall reflects that structural problem. The City Council has begun discussing rent caps and staffing changes to support affordable housing delivery, and the arrival of SB 79 on July 1, 2026 will add further pressure by enabling high-density development near both the Burlingame and Broadway Caltrain stations.
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Related cause: Housing Affordability
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