Santa Rosa Housing Authority: first-quarter briefing shows HAPs averaging $3.1M monthly; wait list far exceeds supply
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Summary
At its Nov. 24 meeting the Santa Rosa Housing Authority heard that staff expended nearly $9.5 million in housing-assistance payments for July–September 2025 (about $3.1 million per month) and serve roughly 1,700 households while the closed wait list likely contains about 5,000 households; staff attributed a year-over-year increase largely to higher HUD fair market rents.
Kate Goldfein, administrative services officer for the Housing and Community Services Department, told the Santa Rosa Housing Authority on Nov. 24 that the agency had "expended nearly $9,500,000 in housing assistance payments, averaging over $3,100,000 per month" for the July–September 2025 quarter. The presentation said most budget lines are "trending fine," subrecipient contracts are executed, and loan funds are committed and reimbursed as developers submit invoices.
Goldfein said some federal and state grant reimbursements drawn in the quarter will appear in the next financial update and noted that CDBG funding tied to recovery from the 2017 Tubbs fire is winding down. Staff also said loan repayments have been robust; staff reported receiving more than the budgeted amount for loan repayments in the first quarter and that those funds enter the housing-assistance-payment (HAP) reserves.
Vice Chair Downey asked whether the recent partial federal government shutdown affected incoming funds. Goldfein replied it did not, saying the authority was able to draw needed federal grant dollars around Sept. 30 and that voucher programs continued to be funded during the lapse.
When commissioners asked why average monthly HAPs rose from about $2.9 million last year to $3.1 million this year, operations staff said the primary driver was higher HUD fair market rents for Sonoma County; individual household circumstances can also change the share tenants pay and thus the authority's portion.
During public comment Fred Allabaugh asked whether the $3.1 million monthly HAP total meets Santa Rosa’s needs. Staff replied that the $3.1 million funds roughly 1,700 households under current allocations and that the Housing Choice Voucher wait list (which has not been opened in several years) likely contains about 5,000 households; staff said a precise percentage of unmet need in the community was "not specified."
Goldfein and other staff said they will continue monitoring housing-impact fees (reported at a low percentage of expected receipts in the first quarter) and grant reimbursements and will include new draws and timing effects in the next financial update.
The authority did not take formal action on the briefing; the presentation was followed by discussion and public comment.