Proposition M – Tax Empty Homes to Invest in Affordable Housing

No matter who you are or where you come from, success in life starts at home. When we all have safe and secure places to live, parents earn more, kids learn better, health and well-being improve, our communities are strengthened, and our region has the building blocks to thrive. But right now, wealthy and powerful real estate developers and corporate landlords control the housing market in California and pour millions into each election to swing votes in their favor. They use predatory strategies to drive up their profits when ordinary working Californians can’t even afford our rent or our mortgages. This especially affects people of color, working families, seniors, and people with disabilities.

There are currently 40,000 vacant homes in the city of San Francisco. Meanwhile, there are 8,000 unhoused residents. Prop M would tax property owners who own a building with at least three empty residential units that are empty for 182 days per tax year.

The tax on these empty homes would go towards the Housing Activation Fund, which helps fund programs that give rent subsidies to older adults 60+ and low-income residents and help obtain, restore, and maintain vacant buildings for affordable housing.

Our city’s housing crisis is something we can solve through policy decisions, and if Prop M passes, we would be one step closer to ensuring all San Franciscans have a safe place to live. Bay Rising Action urges voters to vote YES on Prop M.