Housing Justice

We believe that housing is a fundamental human right.

Addressing housing and homelessness in the Bay Area has thus never been more essential than it is right now. Historical disparities reproduced in today’s housing system operate in tandem with the Bay Area’s immense racial wealth gap, with Black and Latinx resident’s half as likely to own homes and twice as likely to live in poverty. In short, fighting for housing stability and affordability requires putting equity front and center. Housing Justice is a social justice issue.

Lunch and Learn: A Free Lunchtime Virtual Learning Series

Join UWBA’s free virtual Lunch & Learn series exploring housing and homelessness in the Bay Area. Each 45-minute session examines the policies, challenges, and solutions shaping housing affordability and equity across our region.

Explore the Full Series

Improving access to stable, affordable housing and advocate for homelessness prevention

Our Work

United Way Bay Area brings together community leaders, partners, and residents to reshape how the housing crisis is understood – and how it’s solved. Through ongoing conversations, including our monthly Lunch & Learns, we build public understanding and connect people with solutions that expand housing stability across the region.

At the same time, we work alongside partners to keep people housed today – by connecting residents to critical resources through 211, funding community-based organizations that provide food and rental assistance, and supporting pathways to employment and income, including guaranteed income programs that supplement wages.

Housing instability doesn’t happen in isolation—it shapes whether families can stay employed, maintain their health, and build financial security. That’s why we focus on shifting systems and ensuring people have the support they need to remain stable.

Understand Housing Terms

Policy & Advocacy

We advance policies that expand access to affordable housing and prevent displacement – by increasing funding, reforming land-use barriers, and centering the renters most at risk. Our role is to connect community voices, partners, and policymakers to drive solutions that lead to long-term stability.

Learn how UWBA supports and works with local Community Partners

As part of UWBA’s Housing Justice Initiative grantmaking efforts, in 2023, $750,000 was awarded to a total of 25 local Bay Area organizations. The grants will help increase access to stable and affordable housing, address the racial wealth gap, prevent homelessness, and support organizations engaged in policy advocacy around the issue. Nine of the grants, totaling $250,000 were decided by a community-led panel of 7 UWBA Ambassadors with lived experience facing housing insecurity in the region.

Ready More About the $750,000