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ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW DRAFT Most of the housing stock in San Leandro consists of two- and three -bedroom units. In 1990, two - bedroom units accounted for 35 percent of the City total and three -bedroom units accounted for 36 percent of the total. Units with four or more bedrooms made up just 7 percent of the total, and almost all were owner occupied. Only 13 percent of the City's rental housing stock consists of units with three bedrooms or more. By contrast, 65 percent of the City's owner -occupied housing stock consists of units with three bedrooms or more. The latter percentage has probably increased during the last decade, as the majority of homes built during the 1990s contained three or four bedrooms. Vacancy Rates The 2000 Census indicated that 692 housing units in San Leandro, or 2.2 percent of the total housing stock, was vacant as of April 2000. This figure included 86 units for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use. The rental vacancy rate was 2.2 percent, and the for -sale vacancy rate was 0.6 percent. The California Department of Finance reports that the overall vacancy rate remained low in 2001 and was 2.21 percent on January 1, 2002. This is lower than the rate of 3.04 percent reported for Alameda County as a whole. Despite the economic downturn in 2001, the market for affordable units remains competitive. A rate of 3.0 to 5.0 percent is generally considered indicative of a healthy housing market. Vacancy rates in San Leandro have declined since 1990. At that time, 3.51 percent of all housing units in San Leandro were vacant. The vacancy rate was 1.43 percent for ownership housing and 4.5 percent for rental housing. Overcrowding Overcrowding occurs when a household's living area is too small to meet the needs of the household. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development defines "overcrowded" units as having more than one person per room (excluding bathrooms and kitchens) and "severely overcrowded" units as having more than two persons per room. Of the 29,128 occupied housing units in the City in 1990, 5.1 percent (1,475 units) met the census definition of overcrowding. This compares to a statewide average of 20 percent and a County average of 8.2 percent. While Year 2000 Census data is not available, it is likely that overcrowding is more prevalent today than in 1990 as a result of larger household sizes, socio- cultural changes in the population, and higher rent prices (requiring families to "double up" or children to stay at home longer). Table 3-15 indicates the number of overcrowded and severely overcrowded units in the City in 1990. At that time, the incidence of overcrowding was somewhat higher among renters (6.8 percent) than among owners (4.0 percent). This is to be expected, given the smaller size of apartments and other rental units. In 1990, only 0.6 percent of the housing in the City met the definition of severe overcrowding; most of these units were renter -occupied. Age of Housing Stock Chart 3-4 illustrates the distribution of housing by age in the City. Nearly half of San Leandro's housing stock was built during the post-war construction boom between 1945 and 1960. Many of these units are now 50 years old or more and face increasing needs for rehabilitation and repair. HOUSING ELEMENT 3-22 SAN LEANDRO GENERAL PLAN Aq SIA