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General Program Requirements

Housing Element Sites Inventory Guidebook (AB 1397) · 2026 edition · updated 2026-09-22 · California

A jurisdiction’s adequate sites program must accommodate 100 percent of the shortfall of sites necessary to accommodate the remaining housing need for housing for very low- and low-income households during the planning period and include the following components:

  • Permit owner-occupied and rental multifamily uses by right for developments in which 20 percent or more of the units are affordable to lower income households. By right means local government review must not require a conditional use permit, planned unit development permit, or other discretionary review or approval.

  • Permit the development of at least 16 units per site.

  • Ensure sites within suburban and metropolitan jurisdictions — as defined by Government Code Section 65583.2(c)(3)(B)(iii) and (iv) — permit a minimum of 16 dwelling units per acre for incorporated cities within nonmetropolitan/rural counties and nonmetropolitan counties with micropolitan areas or 20 dwelling units per acre for suburban and metropolitan jurisdictions.

  • Ensure a) at least 50 percent of the shortfall of low- and very low-income regional housing need can be accommodated on sites designated for exclusively residential uses, or b) if accommodating more than 50 percent of the low- and very low-income regional housing need on sites designated for mixed-uses, all sites designated for mixed-uses must allow 100 percent residential use and require residential use to occupy at least 50 percent of the floor area in a mixed-use project.

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▸Contents — Housing Element Sites Inventory Guidebook (AB 1397)

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