A SALES TAX ADOPTED by San Mateo County voters in 2016 has helped fuel the construction of almost 5,000 affordable housing units, officials said.

The tax, known as Measure K, was intended to generate funding for affordable housing along with services such as public safety, healthcare and improved infrastructure. 

Since its passage, it has been used to create 4,790 affordable housing units across 71 projects across the county, according to a report from the Housing Leadership Council of San Mateo County, a nonprofit that works to expand the supply of quality low-cost housing. 

“Measure K has worked,” Housing Leadership Council executive director Evelyn Stivers said Friday. “Thousands of people are sleeping tonight in a safe, comfortable home that they can afford because of Measure K.”

Since Measure K was passed, more than $192 million has gone toward affordable housing. 

In one of the most expensive housing markets in the nation, according to Zillow, there is a need for a large supply of below-market rate housing in San Mateo County for essential workers and low-income earners. 

Renters in San Mateo County would need to make around $63 an hour, or $130,000 a year, to afford the $3,300 average monthly rent of a two-bedroom apartment, according to the Housing Leadership Council. 

“There’s a bunch of people that are below that or are not able to meet that rent,” Stivers said. “That means that they either live in crowded situations or they are paying a very high percentage of their income on rent.”

MidPen Housing is one of the largest affordable housing developers in San Mateo County. While most of its financing for projects comes from the state and federal governments, having a local funding source through Measure K has helped MidPen Housing create 1,600 affordable housing units. 

“When Measure K passed, our pipeline quadrupled in the county,” said Nevada Merriman, vice president of policy and advocacy at MidPen Housing. 

Despite the expansion of affordable housing, the county’s homeless rate has risen compared with neighboring counties. From 2022 to 2024, homelessness increased by 18%, according to point-in-time counts. 

In San Francisco County, homelessness grew 7% from 2022 to 2024. In Santa Clara County, the unhoused population rose 8% between 2023 and 2025.

Stivers said the homelessness rate could be much higher without Measure K. 

“We don’t want this, but this is better than it could be,” she said. “We need to not walk away from the local solutions that are buffering us from the worst impacts of these problems.”

Additionally, having a funding resource like Measure K can help San Mateo County withstand potential cuts in federal spending. 

“We are in a moment where federal funding is threatened,” Stivers said. “It is our only hope right now in this moment, of such incredible divisiveness and tumultuousness, to really focus locally on solutions that work, and Measure K is one of them.”

Alise Maripuu is an intern at BCN with a focus on covering the Peninsula. Originally from San Carlos, Alise discovered her passion for journalism after studying abroad in Thailand during her senior year attending UC Santa Cruz. Her experience in Thailand taught her the consequences for democracy when living in a society with strict laws against free speech. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in history, Alise took courses in journalism at Skyline Community College to learn how to write for news. As the Chief Copy Editor on Skyline’s student-run newspaper for the 2023-24 school year, Alise gained editing and managing experience leading a team of reporters. She covered hyperlocal stories affecting her campus such as the rise in food and housing insecurity. Alise wants to focus on data journalism.