Housing
What’s Missing From Apple’s $2.5 Billion Housing Plan
Apple is the latest tech giant to commit funds to California’s housing crisis. But experts say the largest barrier to housing is not money; it's political will.
On Monday, Apple announced a $2.5 billion pledge to finance housing initiatives in California. Deployed in partnership with the state, its plan is designed to improve both “affordability and availability” in California communities that have struggled to meet residents’ needs.
State and business leaders applauded the tech giant for its philanthropic foray, which follows similar moves by Google, Facebook, and Microsoft on the West Coast. But housing experts and advocates are cautious about how much the company’s voluntary investment can do to budge the fundamental barriers to housing construction in the state.