The project is part of a national initiative to expand access to safe, affordable housing
LOS ANGELES, February 13, 2026 – A nonprofit developer broke ground on two of the first homes to be built in South Los Angeles under Senate Bill 9, the state law allowing up to four homes on properties zoned as single-family. The Coalition for Responsible Community Development (CRCD) is building the homes in the Hyde Park neighborhood as part of an initiative to help longtime residents become homeowners.
Enacted in 2021 to help address the state’s housing crisis, Senate Bill 9 enables California homeowners to build additional homes on their property even in places where local zoning allows for only one single-family home. Since the law took effect, most of the projects taking advantage of the new rules have been built in the San Fernando Valley, where lots are larger and incomes can be higher.
CRCD is part of a group of organizations collaborating to create homeownership opportunities in South Los Angeles, a community with lower-than-average incomes and a higher share of Black and Latino residents who have historically faced barriers to homeownership. The Hyde Park project is a pilot to test methods for utilizing new state zoning laws, developing entry-level homes integrated into the neighborhood, and helping residents prepare for homeownership.
The existing two-bedroom home on 4th Avenue that was purchased by CRCD in 2023 where two new homes will be built under Senate Bill 9. (Credit: Jonathon Gooch | Gooch Media Group)
Located at 6552 4th Avenue, the project will include two new homes next to an existing two-bedroom home that CRCD purchased in 2023. The two new homes will be 1,252 square feet with three bedrooms and 643 square feet with two bedrooms. Buyers will purchase through a tenancy-in-common ownership structure, a legal agreement similar to a condominium, but with greater shared responsibilities and typically lower homeownership costs. Prices for the homes have not been set, but CRCD is aiming for homes to be affordable to households earning up to approximately 120 percent of the area median income.
“This is the first project to move into construction under Senate Bill 9 in the Hyde Park neighborhood, and that matters,” said Alejandro Martinez, president of CRCD Partners, the real estate arm of CRCD. “4th Avenue Homes allows us to see what’s possible when new housing policy is applied thoughtfully and at a scale that fits the community. This project is a starting point. It helps set the foundation for future investments that support homeownership, stability, and long-term opportunity for families who already call Hyde Park home.”
Alejandro Martinez, President, CRCD Partners LLC, speaks during the groundbreaking. (Credit: Jonathon Gooch | Gooch Media Group)
Genesis LA, a community development financial institution, is organizing the initiative. Other key partners include Community Coalition, which helped organize residents to shape the design of the initiative, and Self-Help Federal Credit Union, which is developing a new mortgage product that is compatible with tenancy-in-common ownership models and low- and middle-come homebuyers. Neighborhood Housing Services of Los Angeles County will advise potential homebuyers in South LA and help them qualify for mortgages.
“We are excited to help residents of South LA realize the dream of homeownership,” said Tom de Simone, executive director of Genesis LA. “This project is just the beginning. We will continue to work with our partners to develop entry-level homes in neighborhoods that need them most, testing new strategies to lower the costs of homes and helping more Angelenos build wealth and access stability through homeownership.”
Tom de Simone, Executive Director of Genesis LA, shares remarks during the groundbreaking ceremony. (Credit: Jonathon Gooch | Gooch Media Group)
The organizations are also planning a second project with six homes on a vacant commercial lot on South Figueroa Street. The South Figueroa project will be affordable to families earning up to 80 percent of the area median income. It will have a different ownership structure than the Hyde Park project. TRUST South LA, a community land trust, will retain ownership of the land while homebuyers will own the structures, which will make the homes more affordable and retain the affordability when homes are resold to new buyers.
The projects are part of a national initiative called Connecting Capital and Community (3C), overseen by the Washington, DC-based Center for Community Investment with funding from JPMorganChase. The initiative seeks to preserve and create affordable housing and reduce homeownership and wealth gaps. In addition to Los Angeles, the initiative is operating in Miami, Chicago, Washington DC, and Seattle.
“We are proud that Connecting Capital and Community is producing eight affordable homes for families in Los Angeles, but more importantly, this initiative has created a new way for organizations committed to transforming the way we regulate, build, and finance entry-level housing in this city to work together,” said Omar Carrillo Tinajero, executive director for the Center for Community Investment. “We now have a structure to take advantage of new investment and policy changes to create affordable homeownership opportunities on a larger scale going forward.”
“As CRCD marks 20 years of serving South Los Angeles, we are proud to work with Genesis LA and JPMorganChase on this pilot to show how Senate Bill 9 can support real homeownership opportunities for local families in our community,” said Mark Wilson, president and CEO for CRCD. “Creating new affordable paths to ownership in South LA matters because our community continues to have some of the lowest homeownership rates in the city and county. By combining the ability to add new homes with a co-ownership model through tenancy-in-common, we can open the door to stable housing and a pathway to building generational wealth for households who have long deserved that chance.”
About the Coalition for Responsible Community Development
The Coalition for Responsible Community Development (CRCD) is a place-based community development corporation in South Los Angeles with a unique focus on young people ages 14–26.
About Genesis LA
Genesis LA is a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and a Community Development Entity (CDE) whose mission is to deliver financial solutions that advance economic and social opportunities in underserved communities.
About the Center for Community Investment
The Center for Community Investment helps communities create equitable, effective investment systems that can achieve their visions so all residents flourish.
