Google plans to invest $1bn in the San Francisco Bay Area's housing sector over the next decade. The move is designed to tackle the growing shortage of homes in the region, which many people have blamed on the rapid growth of the tech industry. The housing crisis in the Bay Area, particularly in San Francisco, is a complex and controversial topic with no one-size-fits-all solution — but a check for a billion dollars is about as close as you’re going to get, and Google has just announced it’s writing one. In a blog post, Google's chief economist, Hal Varian, said that it was "investing heavily in affordable housing" and would be building more than 1,000 units by 2020. The company will also invest $250m in an incentive-based fund designed to encourage developers to build affordable housing.
Google plans to invest $1bn in the San Francisco Bay Area's housing sector over the next decade. The move is designed to tackle the growing shortage of homes in the region, which many people have blamed on the rapid growth of the tech industry. In a blog post, Google's chief economist, Hal Varian, said that it was "investing heavily in affordable housing" and would be building more than 1,000 units by 2020. The company will also invest $250m in an incentive-based fund designed to encourage developers to build affordable housing.