I remember exactly how it started. It was an email from my landlord.
The moment I read it, the uncertainty of the situation hit me harder than I expected. My mind immediately went into overdrive.
We’re going to have to move, I realized. We have to leave our home.
Then came the questions. Where will we move? How will it affect my daughter? How will I get her to school? What if the rent is higher? Will this hurt my credit score? What happens to my commute?
These are the thoughts that run through your mind when housing suddenly becomes uncertain. There’s an element of fear because the foundation of your life is built on shelter.
And the irony wasn’t lost on me.
For more than 20 years, I’ve helped people buy homes, sell homes, secure rental housing and navigate affordable housing programs. I own a property management company, teach real estate at both UC San Diego and the University of San Diego, and spend much of my career working on housing policy and tenant advocacy.
Yet none of that protected me from the emotional impact of losing my own housing security.
In the college courses I teach, one of the greatest misconceptions we discuss is that homelessness is primarily caused by mental illness or substance abuse. While those issues certainly exist, research consistently shows that housing instability itself creates anxiety, depression, trauma and hopelessness. For many, mental health struggles follow housing displacement rather than cause it.
On the first day of every quarter, I ask my students to close their eyes. I say one word: “home.”
The responses are almost always the same: Safety. Security. Warmth. Comfort. Family. Belonging.
Then I ask them to imagine all of that disappearing. Not just losing a house, but losing the certainty of where they’ll sleep next month or whether they’ll be able to afford a roof over their heads.
That is housing insecurity. Unfortunately, it is becoming increasingly common.
According to the California Association of Realtors, only 22% of California households can afford the state’s median-priced home, which now approaches $1 million. In other words, nearly four out of five Californians are priced out of home ownership.
Those households don’t simply disappear. They compete for an already strained rental market. According to Apartments.com, the median rent for a two-bedroom apartment in San Diego now exceeds $3,000 per month. With the city’s median household income at approximately $109,000, the average household spends between 34.5% and 39.1% of its income on rent alone. As a result, many San Diegans spend well above the widely accepted 30% affordability threshold and are considered “cost-burdened” before they even pay for groceries, transportation, healthcare, childcare or other basic necessities.
These aren’t just statistics.
They are families lying awake wondering where they’ll live next month. Parents deciding between rent and groceries. Children changing schools because their family can no longer afford the neighborhood they call home. Working people doing everything right and still wondering whether housing will remain within reach.
Housing is not simply an economic issue. It is a public health issue. An education issue. A workforce issue. A quality-of-life issue.
It determines where our children go to school, how long we commute, whether employers can attract workers, and whether families have the stability they need to thrive. Housing affects nearly every aspect of our lives. That’s why every Californian should be paying attention.
Many people hope interest rates fall, but lower rates also increase buying power and demand. Without significantly increasing housing supply, that demand simply drives prices even higher. We cannot solve affordability without solving the housing shortage itself. Housing cannot become an issue we care about only after it affects us personally.
We need informed conversations, thoughtful planning and leaders willing to pursue real, long-term housing solutions. We need to recognize that housing isn’t just another political debate. It is one of the defining issues shaping California’s future.
I’ve spent my career helping people find homes. I never imagined I would experience the uncertainty of wondering where my own family might live. Now I understand the emotional impact in a way I never could before.
So I have one request: pay attention to this serious issue.
Learn about the housing challenges facing your community. Hold your elected officials accountable. Don’t wait until a notice arrives in your own inbox before this issue becomes personal. Because housing is more than real estate. More than economics. More than politics.
Home is where we find safety, security, and the place where our families and our futures grow. Every Californian deserves the peace of knowing they’ll still have one tomorrow.
Mike Shenkman is a Southern California real estate professional with over two decades of experience in sales, development, affordable housing, and mortgage finance. He teaches real estate development at UC San Diego and the University of San Diego.
Want to submit a letter to the editor, guest column or opinion piece? Find our guidelines and submission form here.
