By Dr. Mai Thi Nguyen, Co-Director, Center for Housing Policy and Design, Professor of Urban Studies and Planning, and Director of the Design Lab at UC San Diego.
Recently, my co-director Bill Fulton and I had the honor of attending the inaugural National Housing Supply Summit in Washington, DC. Our goals were to ensure that San Diego was a part of the national housing conversation and bring home nuggets of wisdom to tackle San Diego’s persistent and structural shortage of housing. The summit brought together over 300 housing experts, policymakers, and innovators to discuss the full spectrum of the building process, from where we source raw materials to finding talent and labor, financing projects, and altering zoning
As a housing scholar and practitioner focused on San Diego, I see many direct parallels between national insights and the regional obstacles we face. Below, I distill the summit’s findings into six key barriers that are particularly relevant to San Diego’s housing landscape—and share how we might act locally to increase the supply of housing.
1. Zoning and Land Use: Locked Potential
San Diego is one of many U.S. cities constrained by exclusionary zoning and overly complex land use policies. At the Summit, panelists highlighted how outdated codes and discretionary review processes choke housing supply. We see this locally in the difficulty of building “missing middle” housing—duplexes, triplexes, and ADUs—that could serve working families.
Action: We need to scale by-right zoning and adopt form-based codes that allow more flexibility. Unlike traditional zoning, which focuses on land use and prescriptive regulations, form-based codes emphasize the physical form and design of buildings within a neighborhood. This shift allows for clearer development standards and more by-right approvals, reducing discretionary review and legal risk for developers.
2. Permitting Delays: The Invisible Bottleneck
In California, it takes an average of 186 days to secure a permit—and over 460 days in Los Angeles. San Diego’s permitting process is not much better. Delays due to understaffing, outdated systems, and inconsistent reviews make timely housing delivery difficult, even after zoning hurdles are cleared.
Action: Invest in digital permitting platforms and third-party review systems that allow certified private entities to conduct plan reviews and inspections, helping jurisdictions overcome common barriers like staff shortages, slow turnaround times, and inconsistent reviews.
3. Building Codes and Innovation Barriers
The Summit underscored that fragmented building codes—especially across municipalities—stifle innovation like modular housing. In San Diego, off-site construction has tremendous potential, especially given our land constraints and labor shortages. But inconsistent codes and inspection practices make adoption risky and expensive.
Action: Move toward regional code harmonization and performance-based standards.
4. Labor Shortages: No Workers, No Housing
California faces an acute construction labor shortage—more than 300,000 workers short annually. With an aging workforce and underfunded training infrastructure, San Diego struggles to build even the housing that is already approved. This disproportionately affects affordable housing developers, who operate on tighter timelines and budgets.
Action: Expand career technical education (CTE) programs in high schools, trade schools, and community colleges; invest in youth and second-career recruitment.
5. Capital Without Coordination
Financing projects in San Diego—especially affordable housing—often requires juggling multiple funding sources. As highlighted at the Summit, this delays projects and discourages smaller developers. With higher interest rates and softening investor interest, we’re seeing deals stall at an alarming rate.
Action: Create a housing impact fund that reduces the number of funding sources needed, which can simplify the capital stack. This is where philanthropy can be especially effective. A housing impact fund that is non-governmental offers flexibility and speed in funding projects, especially more innovative housing projects.
6. Material Supply Chains: Hidden Costs, Missed Opportunities
San Diego’s housing production is increasingly strained by inefficient and fragmented material supply chains. Builders often outsource purchasing to subcontractors who order materials just days in advance, leading to inventory mismatches, delays, and price volatility. A lack of coordination between manufacturers and builders, inconsistent building codes across jurisdictions, and slow adoption of innovative materials and off-site construction all contribute to higher costs and slower delivery of housing.
Action: Invest in partnerships that support regional off-site manufacturing, promote bulk purchasing cooperatives for small builders, and advocate for uniform regional building codes that reduce inefficiencies in material design and usage. Support technology adoption among local developers to streamline procurement and planning processes, helping reduce waste and shorten construction timelines.
San Diego’s Housing Future: Let’s Work Together
The message from Washington was clear: The housing crisis is national, but there are solutions at the local level. The current administration, both the Mayor’s Office and City Council in San Diego have shown strong leadership in housing policy and planning innovation — but more is needed. We must remove the regulatory, financial, and workforce barriers that prevent us from building the homes our residents need.
Bill and I are paying attention to what’s happening at the national level, staying attuned to federal regulations, incentives, and technical support that affect and/or benefit San Diego. But locally, in San Diego, we must be ready to receive opportunities when they become available with nimble policies and collaborative implementation. Let’s work together, San Diego, to solve the housing supply crisis.
