For decades the Monterey Bay Region has been producing new housing at a rate far below the gradual increase in demand. Insufficient supply results in extremely high rents and homes that are simply unaffordable for the majority of residents. In Monterey County, an individual earning the mean wage would need to work 1.8 full-time jobs to afford a two-bedroom apartment in our county at the fair market rate. Housing costs drive the prices of everything else in Monterey County up as service providers of child care, retail and food build these housing costs into their prices. Expensive housing results in long commutes, traffic, or over-crowding in homes. 53% of farmworkers have non-family members living with them in the same dwelling with 3.4 additional male household members per dwelling.
UWMC is confronting the housing crisis by working to develop affordable housing developments as well as supporting strategies that mitigate homelessness.
Our Housing Strategies
Accessory Dwelling Unit Initiatives
UWMC is focusing on Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) as a way to expand affordable housing within Monterey County. Learn more.
Emergency Food and Shelter grants
The Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP) was created in 1983 to supplement and expand the work of local social service agencies, both nonprofit and governmental, in an effort to help people with economic emergencies (not disaster-related). Learn more.
Monterey County Rent and Utility Assistance
United Way Monterey County has partnered with the County of Monterey to distribute funding to provide rental and utility assistance to low-income eligible households located in Monterey County that are facing housing instability because of loss or reduction in income due to the COVID-19 crisis using state and federal relief funding. Learn more.
Stuff the Bus is an annual school supply drive that provides new backpacks and school supplies to children facing homelessness or near homeless conditions. Learn more.