Housing Resources

Housing Element

The Housing Element (PDF) is part of the Town’s General Plan (PDF). The Housing Element identifies opportunities, challenges, and resources associated with the provision of housing in the Town of Moraga. While it is required by the state, the housing element is a local document with a local impact. It is a chance for residents and the Town to think strategically about housing in Moraga, to consider changes in the community, and to plan how to best meet existing and projected housing needs in a way that maintains the semi-rural community character and high quality of life that Moraga residents enjoy. It is an opportunity to evaluate existing policies and to plan for future challenges.

State law requires cities to update the Housing Element periodically to make sure that the housing needs of the community are being met and that provisions of California law are adequately addressed. Unlike the other General Plan elements, the Housing Element is required to be periodically updated and is subject to statutory requirements and mandatory review and certification by a state agency - the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). The Town’s current Housing Element was adopted by the Town Council on January 28, 2015 and certified by the State of California on February 5, 2015.

Regional Housing Needs Allocation

The Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) is a state-mandated process to identify the local number of housing units (by affordability level) that each California jurisdiction must accommodate in its Housing Element within a seven year period. For the Bay Area, the current Housing Element cycle "projection period" or the time period for which the Regional Housing Need is calculated is January 1, 2014 through October 31, 2022. The current Housing Element cycle "planning period" for the Bay Area, or the time frame between the due date for one housing element and the due date for the next housing element, is January 31, 2015 - January 31, 2023.

As part of this process, HCD identifies the total housing need for the San Francisco Bay Area. The RHNA for each jurisdiction within the Bay Area is finalized through the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG). The final RHNA calculated by ABAG determined the Town of Moraga’s share of the nine county Bay Area new housing construction need at 229 dwelling units for the projection period between 2014 and 2022. The Town’s assigned share was based on additional households expected to reside in the Town, employment trends, access to transportation and other infrastructure, unmet needs among current residents who did not have affordable housing, and the replacement of older homes expected to be demolished during the seven-year period, among other factors.