Households are accruing debt as they try to navigate confusing applications and a patchwork of city, county, and state programs. Meanwhile, fear of eviction looms.

Author Archives: Natalie Orenstein
Natalie Orenstein covers housing and homelessness for The Oaklandside. She was previously on staff at Berkeleyside, where her extensive reporting on the legacy of school desegregation received recognition from the Society of Professional Journalists NorCal and the Education Writers Association. Natalie’s reporting has also appeared in The J Weekly, The San Francisco Chronicle and elsewhere, and she’s written about public policy for a number of research institutes and think tanks. Natalie lives in Oakland, grew up in Berkeley, and has only left her beloved East Bay once, to attend Pomona College.
Have you experienced homelessness? Get trained as a leader in Alameda County
A new “leadership academy” in the East Bay offers paid training in advocacy and policy for youth and adults with experience being unhoused.
This Oakland co-op wants to revive the legendary Esther’s Orbit Room and the Seventh Street corridor
Revitalization without displacement? The East Bay Permanent Real Estate Cooperative is trying to bring back a thriving BIPOC economic and cultural hub in West Oakland.
Oakland considers banning ADUs in the hills to avoid fire danger
The fire department says adding more people and cars will clog streets in a crisis. Homeowners say a backyard-cottage ban would be misguided and inequitable.
Oakland leaders want to legalize more types of housing, including RVs and tiny homes
Amid soaring construction costs and high rents, Mayor Libby Schaaf and City Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Sheng Thao say the city needs to embrace alternative ways of living and building.
Does Oakland need a rental housing registry?
The city can’t easily enforce its rent control law, or communicate with tenants, if it doesn’t track rents. Landlords say the database would be overreach.
‘I was getting sicker and sicker’: Oakland renters sue landlord company Mosser
Dozens of tenants say Mosser and other companies made life miserable through non-stop construction, utility hikes, broken elevators, and security issues.
Behind on its affordable housing goals, Oakland looks to buy, not just build
A new city plan reveals a massive funding gap, prompting Oakland to consider cheaper, quicker ways of creating low-income units.
Oakland wants to end single-family zoning. Can the city get it right?
We looked at two very different neighborhoods that don’t allow apartments, in Rockridge and East Oakland. Can the city undo a legacy of housing segregation without recreating the problems of the past?
Oakland has $4 million for new homeless housing. Where could it go?
Here are the vacant sites in each City Council district that may be used for tiny homes and RV parks.
Oakland landlords could raise rents if a tenant illegally sublets, proposal says
The change is meant to stop renters from scamming the system. But the pandemic has forced some tenants into unusual living situations.
‘Was that an earthquake?’ How to find out what shook Oakland awake
A 2.6 magnitude quake jolted parts of the East Bay early Monday. Here’s where to learn more and get prepared.
Oakland’s scathing encampment audit: Officials, unhoused people, and advocates react
Daryel Dunston, Needa Bee, Nikki Fortunato Bas, and others share their reactions to a critical encampment report.
Eviction attempts plummeted during the pandemic in Oakland
Newly available data show the major impact of Oakland and Alameda County’s eviction moratoriums on renters and landlords.
Homeless activist occupies vacant hill in East Oakland, asking ‘Where do we go?’
Derrick Soo says his protest is an extension of the Moms 4 Housing movement. But a lawsuit says the hill can’t be safely developed.
What do Oakland City Councilmembers want to do about housing and homelessness?
From vacant land to rent help and RVs, city leaders’ budget priorities hint at what you’re likely to hear a lot about in the coming months and years.
Aquí le decimos como tanto inquilinos y propietarios de Oakland pueden solicitar ayuda de emergencia para pagar el alquiler
Si usted o su inquilino no han pagado el alquiler debido a la crisis de COVID-19, es posible que califique para recibir ayuda a través de dos programas nuevos.
Oakland Public Library will reopen for in-person book browsing, computer use
OPL Express will launch at 16 branches on April 19, offering limited indoor services with safety measures.
‘Storm of negligence’: Investigators find systemic ethics issues in Oakland’s housing department
Two employees allegedly violated conflict-of-interest and anti-nepotism rules. The Public Ethics Commission says a lack of training and policies is the bigger issue.
Los inquilinos de un edificio en Fruitvale demandan al propietario por las condiciones peligrosas en las que viven
Ellos afirman que el propietario está infringiendo las leyes de vivienda de Oakland y California. Las viviendas tienen problemas de roedores, moho y grifos que no funcionan.