Rebuilding the California Dream: Pathways to Entry-Level Homeownership
Experts explore the current state of entry-level homeownership in California and the structural, financial, and regulatory factors shaping access to ownership
TIME & LOCATION
Apr 28, 2026, 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM
Sacramento Convention Center, 1401 K St, Sacramento, CA 95814, USA
ABOUT THE EVENT
As housing costs continue to rise across California, entry-level homeownership has become increasingly difficult to attain — particularly for first-time buyers seeking a realistic path into the market. Join the Center for California Real Estate (CCRE) on Tuesday, April 28 from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento for a discussion examining which pathways to ownership remain viable in today’s housing environment.
This panel, titled Rebuilding the California Dream: Pathways to Entry-Level Homeownership, will explore the current state of entry-level homeownership and the structural, financial, and regulatory factors shaping access to ownership. Bringing together developers, academics, and state housing leaders, panelists will discuss how development economics, financing standards, and regulatory frameworks affect the feasibility of producing lower-cost ownership opportunities, including smaller-scale models such as condominiums and townhomes, and identify practical solutions to expand homeownership.
Can't join CCRE in Sacramento? Tune into the live conversation via Zoom.
Moderator:
CEO
CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Hawkins oversees C.A.R.’s objectives, business development, strategic planning and legislative policies, and creating products, so that real estate professionals can remain at the center of the real estate transaction and succeed in today’s rapidly changing real estate market. Hawkins previously served as CEO for the Pacific West Association of REALTORS® (PWR), one of the largest local real estate associations in California. He joined PWR in 1998 as vice president of government affairs, representing the interests of the association in matters involving local, state, and federal governments. He was named Executive Vice President of Government Affairs in 2008 and then became the association’s CEO in 2015. At the national level, he served on NAR’s Association Executive Committee from 2014-2024 and is an NAR Presidents’ Circle and RPAC Hall of Fame member.
Panelists:
Minority Leader
California State Assembly
A life-long farmer, Assemblyman Flora serves as a Director for International Sales at the Exact Corporation, a family-owned business that manufactures innovative products for both nut harvesting and forcible entry equipment for firefighting. Prior to entering the business world, Flora received training as a paramedic and worked for CAL FIRE for three summers. While serving in the Legislature, Asm. Flora has fought for improved public safety in California, as well as working to ensure hard-working farmers have a voice at the table. As the newly elected Republican Leader of the State Assembly, Flora works to ensure fairness and integrity in the legislative process through both bipartisan cooperation and principled partisan opposition. He has served as a voting member on a wide range of other legislative committees, giving him a broad perspective on the challenges facing the state.
Partner
Holland & Knight
Preiss is a Partner in Holland & Knight's West Coast Land Use and Environmental practice group. He has practiced land use and real estate law for over 40 years, representing private and public sector clients in complex development permitting and related real estate transactions throughout California. Preiss has obtained entitlements for diverse residential, commercial, industrial, and mixed-use projects, including general plan amendments, specific plans, rezonings, subdivisions, use permits, and related CEQA review. Preiss served as vice-president, counsel for a developer of large mixed-use projects in Northern California. His practice also includes California surface mining matters and related agreements.
Former California Senate Majority Leader & Speaker Emeritus
Former Senate Majority Leader Emeritus Hertzberg is known for taking on the biggest and most challenging issues facing California, and for brokering some of the toughest negotiations. In the words of one veteran Sacramento columnist, he is “an intense bundle of energy, an all-night negotiator.” Sen. Hertzberg’s areas of public policy interest know no limit. Hertzberg is a leader in California’s fight against climate change and its impacts like drought and wildfire. In 1979, Sen. Hertzberg earned his law degree from University of California, Hastings College of the Law and became a member of the California Bar. The Los Angeles Business Journal named him one of the top ten lawyers in Los Angeles, and The Daily Journal has repeatedly named him one of the top 100 lawyers in California.
Co-Director
cityLAB UCLA
Proussaloglou is an architect, planner, and researcher focused on interrogating the impact of public policy on the built environment. He leads cityLAB’s Reimagining Housing research area where he uses a “housing first” approach to demonstrate that affordable, well-designed housing and neighborhoods are attainable foundations of equitable cities. Proussaloglou holds a Master of Architecture and a Master of Urban Planning from UCLA. Prior to joining cityLAB, he worked as a researcher at think tanks such as the Brookings Institution and the Center for Neighborhood Technology, and as a designer at architecture films such as Perkins and Will and Sharif, Lynch; Architecture.
Assistant Majority Leader
California State Senate
Senator Aisha Wahab was elected to the California State Senate in 2022. In 2018 when she won her seat on Hayward City Council, she made national headlines as the first Afghan-American woman elected to public office in the United States. As Mayor Pro Tempore & City Council Member of Hayward, she implemented policies that expanded homeownership opportunities and supported small businesses. She entered public life to amplify the voices of renters and build a community that everyone can afford to call home. Sen. Wahab is dedicated to addressing issues including housing affordability, civic engagement, education, and economic inequality. She was selected to join the White House Roundtable of Afghan-American Leaders. Prior to her career in public service, Sen. Wahab worked at non-profits, community organizing, and technology.