We are CalHome | A Rally for CalHome Funding | Sacramento, CA

Habitat for Humanity California hosted a press conference and rally on Monday, November 17, 2025 at the California State Capitol to urge Governor Gavin Newsom to include $500 million for the CalHome Program in the January 2026–27 State Budget proposal.

The event brought together state legislators, housing advocates, and community leaders united in their call to restore this critical funding source for affordable homeownership supply. The CalHome Program, administered by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), provides grants and loans to local municipalities and nonprofit home developers to create and preserve affordable, for-sale homes for working families.

The single state source for funding that produces new homes that low-income Californians can afford to buy, CalHome provides an affordable avenue out of lifelong rentership, and creating the new housing supply that down payment assistance leaves on the table.

“CalHome is a proven and effective strategy to address California’s housing affordability crisis,” said Debbie Arakel, Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity California. “When it was zeroed out in the 2025–26 budget, more than 5,000 homes in the pipeline were left without foundational resources to be built. Smart policy is investing in a permanent housing solution with a proven track record – CalHome is a no brainer. We’re calling on the Governor to invest in the future of working families striving for stability and security through homeownership.”

Restoring $500 million to CalHome in the 2026–27 budget would directly support the construction and preservation of thousands of affordable ownership homes statewide - from dense urban cores to rural and tribal communities.

Speakers included:
Assemblymember Dr. Corey Jackson (D-Moreno Valley)
Assemblymember Maggy Krell (D-Sacramento)
Senator Angelique Ashby (D-Sacramento)
Councilmember Cindy Silva, City of Walnut Creek
Karim Drissi - California Building Industry Association
Corey Smith – Housing Action Coalition
Alicia Sebastian – California Coalition for Rural Housing