Berkeley

New Affordable Housing Preferences Can Help You Return or Stay in Berkeley

Published

2 years ago

January 20, 2024

New rules will help people who were forced from their homes because of BART construction or foreclosure since 2005. Photo courtesy City of Berkeley.

By Matthai Chakko

Households who lost their homes in Berkeley through foreclosure since 2005 or by the construction of BART in the 1960s-70s can apply to be included among seven groups who will have higher priority in many affordable housing lotteries, which already filter households by income.
Under new rules now in effect in Berkeley, people in those two categories can apply for certification before applying for housing. They would join five other categories for which people would provide further information when applying for housing:

• Current or former residents of formerly redlined neighborhoods, areas devalued by the federal government through discriminatory practices
• Child or grandchild of those who’ve lived in formerly redlined neighborhoods
• People displaced due to a no-fault or non-payment eviction in Berkeley over the past seven years
• People in Berkeley who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, or those who are homeless with a previous address in Berkeley and are not already being prioritized for Permanent Supportive Housing
• Households with at least one child aged 17 or younger

These policies will apply to a portion of new affordable housing units created through the City’s Housing Trust Fund and Below Market Rate programs, which cover all new affordable multi-unit construction in Berkeley.
Affordable housing applications in Berkeley will ask questions about all seven criteria to see if you qualify for any of the preference categories. If selected for housing, you will need to provide additional information to verify your eligibility.

For the two preference categories that require a certificate — a BART Displacement Certificate or a Foreclosure Displacement Certificate — apply now to help speed a future application for affordable housing.
Anyone can also sign up to receive email alerts for affordable housing openings in Berkeley or Alameda County.

APPLY FOR BART CONSTRUCTION OR FORECLOSURE PREFERENCES
Households eligible for the BART construction or foreclosure preferences can apply for a certificate at any time for use in affordable housing applications. For all other preferences, households do not need certificates and will indicate their eligibility when applying for housing.
Please allow up to two weeks for your application for either certificate to be processed. The City may reach out to request more information. If approved, you will receive a certificate number by email to then use when applying to eligible affordable housing units.

Displaced due to BART construction
You are eligible for the BART Construction Certificate if you, your parent, grandparent, or great-grandparent lost their home in Berkeley due to the construction of BART in the 1960s and 1970s. If approved, you will get first preference over other categories in an affordable housing lottery.
To apply, submit the BART Construction Displacement Certificate Application.
The application will ask for:

• Address you or your family was displaced from
• Name and birthdate of the adult(s) who rented or owned the property
• Birth or adoption records linking you to the person who was displaced (if you need time to gather these records, you can still apply and send the records by email afterward)
Displaced due to foreclosure
You are eligible for the Foreclosure Certificate if you or a member of your household was displaced due to foreclosure since 2005 of a property in Berkeley.

To apply, submit the Foreclosure Displacement Certificate Application.
The application will ask for:

• Address of the foreclosed property and year of move-out
• Name of adult(s) who owned the property
• Notice of Trustee Sale (legal notice of foreclosure)
• If your name is not on the Notice of Trustee Sale, you will also need to submit proof that you lived at the property (if you need time to gather these records, you can still apply and send the records by email afterward)

ASSISTANCE FOR BART CONSTRUCTION OR FORECLOSURE DISPLACEMENT CERTIFICATES
Schedule a 30-minute in-person assistance appointment at 2180 Milvia St. to get support in applying for a Berkeley BART Construction Displacement Certificate or Foreclosure Displacement Certificate.

After scheduling, details will be provided in a follow-up email. Visit the affordable housing preferences and certificates page for more information, and email HousingPreferences@berkeleyca.gov with questions.
APPLY FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING
Find affordable housing opportunities on the Alameda County Housing Portal. Sign up to receive email alerts when opportunities in Berkeley become available.

When applying for housing, check the appropriate boxes for any preferences for which you are eligible. If you are selected for a unit, the property manager will reach out to request more information and documentation to verify your eligibility.
Applicants with the BART Construction Displacement Certificate will receive first preference over other categories. Other applicants will be sorted by the total number of preference categories for which they are eligible.

HOUSING PREFERENCE SUPPORTS ANTI-DISPLACEMENT EFFORTS

The City of Berkeley’s Housing Preference Policy helps families stay in or return to Berkeley. The City partnered with two nonprofit organizations — Healthy Black Families and East Bay Community Law Center — to develop the policy through a collaborative, community-driven process.

The policy aims to reduce displacement and address historical injustices such as redlining. Under this practice, the federal government designated redlined neighborhoods as the riskiest places to issue loans during the 1930s-60s. Redlining devalued properties, undermining housing stability and enabling ongoing displacement.

The City of Berkeley is also making historic investments in affordable housing, including the $135 million Measure O bond dedicated to affordable housing, of which $53 million is dedicated to affordable housing at Ashby and North Berkeley BART stations. Measure O is increasing the pace of affordable housing development, with over 1,000 units in development.

If you or your family were displaced or are at risk of displacement from Berkeley, applying for affordable housing preferences offers a path to return to or remain in your community.

Everyone eligible should sign up for notifications and apply to affordable housing listings on the Housing Portal as they become available. Those who were displaced due to BART or foreclosure should apply for their preference certificate now.
Matthai Chakko is the communications director for the City of Berkeley.

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UC Berkeley Named Top Public University in the U.S. and No. 7 in the World by ‘U.S. News’

Berkeley has been consistently awarded the distinction of the U.S.’s top public university since the Best Global Universities list was first published in 2014. “A strong position in the Best Global Universities rankings recognizes a school’s profound commitment to world-class research and cross-border academic excellence,” said LaMont Jones, managing editor for education at U.S. News.

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7 days ago

June 24, 2026

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Photo by Keegan Houser/UC Berkeley.

The 2026 Best Global Universities rankings evaluated 2,250 research institutions from more than 100 countries

By Lila Thulin

U.S. News & World Report has ranked UC Berkeley No. 7 in its 2026 list of the best global universities, which assesses more than 2,250 research institutions worldwide.

Berkeley also claimed the honor of top public university in the U.S.

Released on Monday, the list evaluates universities from more than 100 countries on 13 metrics such as global and research reputation (as reported by academics and peers) and number of highly cited scholarly papers.

Berkeley has been consistently awarded the distinction of the U.S.’s top public university since the Best Global Universities list was first published in 2014.

“A strong position in the Best Global Universities rankings recognizes a school’s profound commitment to world-class research and cross-border academic excellence,” said LaMont Jones, managing editor for education at U.S. News.

The rankings also assess a university’s strength in various subject areas; these assessments are separate from U.S. News’ 2026 Best Graduate Programs rankings released in April.

This year, Berkeley was named in the top three nationally in seven subject areas – environment/ecology, ecology, water resources, physics, computer science, chemistry, and engineering – and in the top five for a total of 17 subjects. Subject rankings are based heavily on scholarly publications and citations as well as reputation.

In September, U.S. News also released its 2026 Best Colleges list, in which Berkeley was also named the No. 1 public institution among American universities.

That honor joins other accolades judging campus to be the best public university in the country, such as those from Forbes, The Wall Street Journal and Times Higher Education.

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Arts and Culture

Farwest Region Deltas Celebrate Centennial With “September Breakfast” Honoring Vivian Osborne Marsh

The region was established in 1925 under the leadership of Vivian Osborne Marsh, who became its first Regional Director. Marsh was a pioneering scholar and civic leader, earning recognition as the first Black woman to receive both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in anthropology from UC Berkeley.

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10 months ago

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Farwest Regional Director, Kimberly Usher, Mayor Barbara Lee, US Representative Lateefah Simon, and Farwest Regional Representative, Radiya Ajibade. Photo courtesy of Farwest Regional Photographer Vicki P. Love.

By Antoinette Porter

Hundreds of members of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and their guests gathered at the Martin Luther King Jr. Student Union at the University of California, Berkeley, to mark the 100th anniversary of the sorority’s Farwest Region.

Marsh went on to serve as Delta Sigma Theta’s 7th National President, where she launched the sorority’s National Library Project to expand access to books in underserved Black communities in the South. During her presidency, the organization also became a prominent voice in the civil rights movement, lobbying Congress to pass anti-lynching legislation.

Bak in the Bay Area, Marsh devoted her career to advancing educational opportunities, mentoring young people, and strengthening community life. That commitment continues to shape the region, which supports initiatives in education, social justice, and economic development. Current projects include raising scholarship funds for students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, voter education campaigns, and health and wellness programs.

A century after its founding, the Farwest Region of Delta Sigma Theta remains active across California and other western states, carrying forward Marsh’s vision of service and advocacy.

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Arts and Culture

Cal Performances Presents Angélique Kidjo & Yo-Yo Ma in Sarabande Africaine at UC Berkeley Greek Theatre on Aug. 30

On Saturday, Aug. 30, the pair will debut the Bay Area premiere of Sarabande Africaine, joined by pianist Thierry Vaton, percussionist David Donatien, and special guest Sinkane. The program illuminates centuries of musical interplay between African traditions and Western classical forms, using the Baroque sarabande dance, and its African ancestor, the Congolese spirit dance Zarabanda, as a gateway to exploring the deep, interconnected roots of global music.

Published

10 months ago

August 25, 2025

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Angelique Kidjo and Yo-Yo Ma. Wikimedia photos.

By Carla Thomas

On Labor Day weekend two of the world’s most celebrated musicians and cultural ambassadors, Grammy Award–winning vocalist Angélique Kidjo and legendary cellist Yo-Yo Ma join forces for an evening of music, history, and cultural dialogue at UC Berkeley’s historic Hearst Greek Theatre.

Both Kidjo and Ma have built careers not only as great performers but as passionate advocates for cultural understanding. Sarabande Africaine is as much a conversation about shared heritage as it is a musical performance, blending genres, geographies, and histories.

“Every day there are moments when all of us can feel we are on the inside of something and also when we feel we are on the outside of something,” said Yo-Yo Ma. “To be able to understand both at the same time and oscillate between the two gives us a larger perspective on the world.”

“If your mind is open, and there is no fear, it’s easier to listen, and to question yourself,” said Kidjo.

The upcoming performance is presented within Cal Performances’ Illuminations: “Exile & Sanctuary” series for the 2025–26 season. The production explores exile as more than just physical displacement, but a disruption in identity and belonging, while sanctuary represents both refuge and the creative space where new connections and communities can take shape.

Cal Performances’ Illuminations bridges performances with UC Berkeley’s academic research, pairing the arts with conversations about urgent global issues.

Kidjo’s continued partnership with Cal Performances includes her 2021–22 artist-in-residence, premiering her music-theater work Yemandja, set in 19th-century West Africa during the transatlantic slave trade.

She also participated in the Bias in Our Algorithms and Society panel alongside campus leaders like Jennifer Chayes, and joined the Black Studies Collaboratory for a dialogue on music, diaspora, and the world.

She has since returned to Berkeley for multiple performances, most recently in 2024 at Zellerbach Hall.

Yo-Yo Ma’s history with Cal Performances spans decades, beginning in 1997. One notable project includes the 2018 performance of Bach’s complete cello suites at the Greek Theatre, a testament to his devotion to creating “transformative concert experiences in iconic spaces.”

For tickets and more information, visit calperformances.org.