By Dan Carson
A $25 billion statewide bond measure headed for the November 2026 ballot could pave the way for middle income Davis families to purchase new homes in Village Farms Davis with only a 3 percent down payment via an innovative new statewide program that would create no cost burdens for City of Davis or California taxpayers.
Backers of the measure have already submitted 920,000 signatures to send the California Middle Class Homeownership and Family Home Construction Act to the voters, well in excess of the 546,652 signatures needed to qualify it for a November 3, 2026 vote. About 2,300 registered voters in Yolo County signed petitions to send the measure to the voters.
“We are excited about this promising new ballot initiative,” said Sandy Whitcombe of the Yes on V campaign. “If it passes, this program could be the key for the many young families who can afford monthly payments for a modest home but haven’t been able to save up tens of thousands of dollars for a 20 percent down payment — a goal post that keeps moving further away from them as home prices increase. Village Farms Davis was designed with a diverse mix of new housing options for the missing middle, and it appears most of the homes would qualify for this downpayment assistance.”
The full text of the measure can be found via the link below. It would authorize the issuance of new state revenue bonds that would be sold to spur the development of additional housing within the financial reach of middle income families.
Currently, down payment requirements of as much as 20 percent are a formidable barrier for middle income families wishing to buy a home. The ballot initiative would help overcome that problem by providing down payment assistance equal to 17 percent of the purchase price of a new home. Homebuyers would make a separate 3 percent down payment out of their own pockets. A family would be obligated to pay back the state assistance it received over time, but at a much lower interest rate (perhaps 3 percent annually) than conventional loans (now about 6 percent).
The initiative would benefit future Village Farms Davis homebuyers. The majority of the homes planned there (over 1,000) would range in size from 900 to 1,600 square feet. Based on current housing market conditions—with home costs in Davis averaging $500 per square foot—expected home values would range from $450,000 to $800,000.
Absent this new program, a conventional loan to buy a home in the middle of that range, or $625,000, might require a 20 percent or $125,000 down payment. This measure would allow that family to close escrow with a $19,000 down payment. They would be obligated to repay that 17% contribution over time, but would overcome what, for many families, is a crushing barrier to home ownership — the up-front six-figure cost of a down payment.
The initiative generally permits a family earning up to 200 percent of the average monthly income of their county of residence to qualify for this kind of down payment assistance. Accordingly, a family of four in Yolo County with an annual income of as much as $271,800 could get down payment help under this measure. However, families with much lower income levels would also benefit from this new program.
In the example above involving the purchase of a new $625,000 home in Village Farms Davis, an annual gross income of about $160,000 a year would be sufficient for them to buy that home and pay their loans, property taxes and homeowners’ insurance. That’s an affordable 30 percent of their monthly income for a family earning about 20 percent above the county average.
Similarly, with the help of this new program, a family of four could buy a $450,000 starter home in Village Farms Davis with an annual gross income of $135,900 — the average income of families in Yolo County. The combined cost of their loans, property taxes and homeowners’ insurance would be a very affordable 27 percent of their monthly income.
The ballot initiative only applies to purchases of new homes, not existing ones, and the price of any homes bought under this new state program would be capped (in Yolo County, at a little over $1 million). The purchasers must have been California residents for at least a year and must occupy their new home, not buy it and then rent it out. But program participants would not have to be first-time homebuyers, as other such programs often require.
Will this initiative pass? It has a very strong chance of succeeding. The ballot campaign is being led by an LA political powerhouse, former Assembly Speaker and former Senate leader Bobby Hertzberg. Hertzberg has assembled a formidable coalition to campaign for the measure that includes housing advocates, realtors, bankers, builders, and the carpenters union. Polling shows it has strong voter support, driven, undoubtedly, by widespread public concern over the affordability of housing in California.
The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office found that the bond measure would have no direct fiscal impact on state and local government costs. That’s because it would be financed with revenue bonds paid back entirely by homebuyers, not taxpayers, who would also cover all costs for the state agency that would administer the program. The passage of Herzberg’s measure could also allow the City of Davis to finally ditch the idea of creating and running its own down payment program at a time when the city is dealing with a multi-million dollar funding shortfall.
A separate $10 billion housing bond by the Legislature will also likely to go before statewide voters in November. It would use state taxpayer funds to provide affordable housing assistance mainly for low-income Californians. Herzberg also supports that measure, believing that it is important to help both low- and middle-income families harmed by California’s persistent failure to build enough new homes.
The Hertzberg measure mandates that his new program be put in place within a year after voter approval, or by 2028. That’s just about perfect timing for Village Farms. The measure allows local builders to voluntarily opt into the program and put Davis homebuyers at the head of the line for state help.
This stunning surprise move by Herzberg and his allies to qualify this innovative measure for the ballot has handed City of Davis voters an unparalleled opportunity. If voters greenlight Village Farms and Hertzberg’s measure, the door would be wide open for many middle income families to obtain generous down payment assistance and buy a new home here. The measure would likewise benefit Willowgrove, another local housing proposal, as well as some other housing projects that are planned.
Lest we forget, there’s an additional side-benefit of all this: The arrival of a number of new Davis families would almost certainly result over time in a surge of new student enrollment into Davis schools that could thwart the closure of Patwin and Birch Lane.
Dan Carson is a former Davis City Council member and city commissioner with a 45-year career in journalism and state and local government service.
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