California is in the midst of an unprecedented demographic period.

While the state’s population is declining for the first time since records have been kept, yet at the same time, new housing continues to be built and occupied.

Between January 2020 and January 2023 California lost almost 800,000 residents, according to estimates by the state’s Department of Finance.

California’s population today is about the same as the state’s population in 2015, but there are now almost 800,000 more housing units. So why does the state still have a housing crisis?

The Public Policy Institute of California reasons that, in part, fewer people are spreading out across more housing. And in most large cities, there is not enough new housing to make up for this shift.

These new patterns come after decades of the state’s population growth outpacing new housing.

Story Date: September 28, 2023