The Legislature finds and declares that:
(a)
There is a continuing and urgent need to provide affordable mortgage financing to meet the increasingly unfulfilled housing needs of citizens of this state.
(b)
There is a need to develop financial mechanisms to make homes affordable to low- and moderate-income buyers who intend to occupy the homes as their primary residences.
(c)
The high cost of housing impedes the ability of California employers to compete in the national marketplace for employees.
(d)
Affordable
housing enhances the quality of life for California residents and provides fuel for the state’s economic engine.
(e)
Housing is a critical component of the California economy, both as an income producing sector and a principal factor in economic development.
(f)
California’s housing crisis severely impacts families struggling to provide safe, stable homes for their children to grow and learn and the workers who are the backbone of many of the state’s most important industries.
(g)
The percentage of Californians able to purchase their own homes continues to decline.
(h)
There is a need to streamline the agency’s homeownership assistance programs to make them more efficient and effective.
(i)
Therefore, this chapter is enacted to make home purchases more affordable to low- and moderate-income Californians seeking the opportunity to own and occupy their own homes.