California
Will lower mortgage rates save California’s housing market?
Will lower mortgage rates convince California house hunters to stop balking at unaffordable homes on the market?
What’s next for interest rates is a heated, national debate.
The Federal Reserve is taking a cautious approach to further cuts in the rates it controls, fearing ongoing trade wars could reignite problematic inflation. Fed critics, most notably President Donald Trump, think rates are too high and the Fed should be aggressively cutting.
Political theater aside, what might lower rates mean for California’s housing market? And remember, Fed cuts don’t always lower what mortgage borrowers pay.
Let me remind you, and not for the first time, that a historical perspective suggests that cheaper money is not a perfect cure. You see, bargain financing has a bad habit of arriving when the economy is in disarray.
To see what’s up – or down – with the market, my trusty spreadsheet looked at statewide homebuying data from the California Association of Realtors, the average 30-year mortgage rate from Freddie Mac, and government job statistics.
These economic indicators were divided into three groups dating back to 1990 to gives us a view into how homebuying performed in 12-month periods – when rates fell the most vs. when financing costs increased significantly.
During these 36 years, rates averaged a drop to 5.5% from 6.5% in their gaudiest declines. Within the largest significant rate increases, mortgages averaged a jump to 6.2% from 5.2%.
Rate changes
When rates drop, house hunters get busy.
The number of single-family homes sold averaged a 5% one-year gain during the biggest rate cuts since 1990. However, sales decreased by an average of 6% when rates rose sharply.
But there’s a catch: Sales declined in 34% of these 12-month periods when rates tumbled.
And look out for cooler appreciation.
The statewide median home price rose an average of 4% in the years when rates tumbled since 1990, but it increased at a 7% annual pace when rates jumped.
Plus, prices dipped 20% of the time when rates fell sharply.
Cheaper money can also alter the number of options house hunters have to choose from.
Inventory, as measured by days on market, fell by an average of 11% when rates tumbled in 36 years, but rose 12% with rate jumps. Elevated buying may have gobbled up supply.
And buyers’ timing can change.
Days on market sped up by four days on average with declining rates since 1990, but selling times increased by four days when rates jumped.
Affordability matters. Estimated house payments fell 5% on average with declining rates but increased by 18% when rates rose.
Tricky juggle
Do not forget real estate’s three keys: “Jobs. Jobs. Jobs.”
When mortgage rates took their deepest dives during the past 36 years, the number of California workers fell by 0.4% on average, as California unemployment rose to 8.2% from 6.8%.
Buying a California home requires a solid paycheck.
Consider how employers statewide hired when rates soared since 1990. Jobs grew at a rate of 2.4% annually, as unemployment dropped to 5.8% from 6.5%. Those extra paychecks create potential house buyers.
So it’s a tricky juggle between real estate’s thirst for cheaper money and its need for a healthy job market.
Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com
California
Republican governor candidate Chad Bianco says he’s the ‘antithesis to California state government’
We are counting down to the California governor’s race. Chad Bianco, the sheriff of Riverside County, is one of the two biggest names running on the Republican ticket.
In a one-on-one interview with Eyewitness News political reporter Josh Haskell, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said, “I am the antithesis to California state government because I am going to take a nuclear bomb into that building and absolutely destroy everything that they do to us behind closed doors.”
Although he’s been elected by the voters twice, Bianco says he’s not a politician — which is why he believes his campaign for California governor is resonating, as reflected in the polls.
“President Trump, in one year, from 2025 when he took over, until now, did absolutely nothing to harm California. What’s harming California is 30 years of Democrat one-party rule that have created an environment here that no one can live in anymore. They’ve only been successful here in California because we vote D no matter what. You vote D or die. I mean, that’s it. Charles Manson would be elected in California if he was the only Democrat on the ballot,” Bianco said.
Bianco isn’t the only conservative Republican running for governor, and according to polling, he’s neck-and-neck with former Fox News host Steve Hilton.
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Leading in some polls in the wide-open California Governor’s race as the June primary creeps closer is Republican and former Fox News host Steve Hilton.
“Steve has no chance of winning in November. The Democrats know that I’m going to win in November, and so they have to do everything they can to keep me out of that,” Bianco said.
When asked about the affordability crisis in the state, Bianco said, “Almost the entire issue of affordability in California is because of regulation, excessive regulation imposed by government. Every single regulation can be signed away with the governor’s signature.”
“It is a drug and alcohol addiction problem that, and a mental health problem,” he said about the homelessness crisis. “Every single bit of money that is going to these nonprofits that say ‘homeless,’ zero money. You’re getting absolutely nothing. I can’t tell you that we would end what we see in the homeless situation within a year, but I guarantee you we would never see it again after two years.”
When challenged on that prediction, pointing to how the state doesn’t have the facilities to treat the number of people living on our streets, Bianco responded, “We have been conditioned to believe that buildings take five years to build. It takes 90 days or less to build a house, but in California, it takes three to five years because the government won’t allow it. The regulations that are destroying this state are going to be removed with me as the governor.”
Bianco also said California jails shouldn’t have to play the role of treatment facilities.
Although he says he supports the Trump administration and wants the president’s endorsement, Bianco has been traveling the state — meeting not just with Republicans, but Democrats and independents as well. He says all of our state government officials have failed.
The primary election is June 2.
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A new poll shows there’s still no clear front-runner in the race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Copyright © 2026 KABC Television, LLC. All rights reserved.
California
PlayOn Sports fined $1.1 million by California watchdog over student data violations
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (FOX26) — California’s privacy watchdog has ordered PlayOn Sports to pay a $1.10 million fine and change how it handles consumer data after finding the company’s practices violated state law in ways that affected students and schools in the state.
The California Privacy Protection Agency Board issued the decision following a settlement reached by CalPrivacy’s Enforcement Division.
The decision is the first by the board to address privacy violations involving students and California schools.
Schools across the country use PlayOn Sports’ GoFan platform to sell digital tickets to high school sporting events, theater performances, and homecoming and prom dances, with attendees presenting tickets at the door on their mobile phones.
Schools also use PlayOn Sports’ platforms for other sports-related activities, including attending games, streaming them online, and looking up statistics about teams and players.
In California, about 1,400 schools contract with PlayOn Sports for these services.
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GoFan is also the official ticketing platform for the California Interscholastic Federation, the governing body for high school sports.
According to the board’s decision, PlayOn Sports used tracking technologies to collect personal information and deliver targeted advertisements to ticketholders and others using its services.
The company allegedly required Californians to click “agree” to tracking technologies before they could use their tickets or view PlayOn Sports websites, without providing a sufficient opt-out option.
“Students trying to go to prom or a high school football game shouldn’t have to leave their privacy rights at the door,” said Michael Macko, CalPrivacy’s head of enforcement. “You couldn’t attend these events without showing your ticket, and you couldn’t show your ticket without being tracked for advertising. California’s privacy law does not work that way. Businesses must ensure they offer lawful ways for Californians to opt-out, particularly with captive audiences.”
The decision also describes students as a uniquely vulnerable population and warns that targeted advertising systems can subject students to profiling that can follow them for years, expose them to manipulative or harmful content, and develop sensitive inferences about their lives.
Instead of providing its own opt-out method, PlayOn Sports directed students and other users to opt out through the Network Advertising Initiative and the Digital Advertising Alliance, which the decision said violated the company’s responsibility to provide its own way for consumers to opt out. The company also allegedly failed to recognize opt-out preference signals and did not provide Californians with sufficient notice of its privacy practices.
“We are committed to making it as easy as possible for all Californians — from high school students to older adults, and everyone in between — to make the choice of whether they want to be tracked or not,” said Tom Kemp, CalPrivacy’s executive director. “Californians can opt-out with covered businesses, and they can sign up for the newly launched DROP system to request that data brokers delete their personal information.”
Beyond the $1.10 million fine, the board’s order requires PlayOn Sports to conduct risk assessments, provide disclosures that are easy to read and understand, and implement proper opt-out methods.
The order also requires the company to comply with California’s privacy law prohibiting the selling or sharing of personal information of consumers between 13 and 16 without their affirmative opt-in consent.
California
California bill to bar police from taking second job with ICE advances in state Assembly
Wednesday, March 4, 2026 4:43AM
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KABC) — A bill that would prevent police officers from moonlighting with federal immigration enforcement agencies, such as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is advancing through the California State Assembly.
AB 1537 passed the State Assembly’s committee on public safety on Tuesday.
The bill also requires that officers report any offers for secondary employment related to immigration enforcement to their place of work.
Those failing to comply could face decertification as a peace officer in California.
The bill was introduced by Assemblymember Isaac Bryan, whose district includes Mar Vista, Ladera Heights, Mid-Wilshire and parts of South Los Angeles.
Copyright © 2026 KABC Television, LLC. All rights reserved.
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