As executive director of a housing collaborative, I want to earn—not assume—your yes vote on Proposition 1, the Veterans and Affordable Housing Bond Act of 2026. Housing policy can be complex, but the case for Prop 1 is simple and rooted in Valley values: Work hard. Be a good neighbor. Fix the roof before the rain comes.

At the San Joaquin Valley Housing Collaborative, I hear the same story again and again: adults working full-time jobs moving back into childhood bedrooms because their paychecks no longer cover a home of their own, and families doing everything right worried that one more rent increase could leave them with nowhere to go. For decades, rents and home prices have risen faster than wages. Like a leaking roof, the problem will not fix itself, and the longer we wait, the more repairs cost.

But I also know something hopeful about the Valley. Years ago, while conducting outreach for an affordable housing development in Tulare, I braced for angry calls from neighbors. Instead, callers said: I live down the street. My mom can’t afford her rent anymore. How do I get her on the list? That is who we are. Housing is not about strangers; it is about our parents, children, and neighbors. Proposition 1, on the Nov. 3 ballot, would invest $11.25 billion to build affordable homes and expand homeownership for working families, seniors, and veterans—without raising taxes.

It begins with those who served. California has one of the nation’s largest populations of homeless veterans, and Prop 1 reserves funding for veterans’ housing and homeownership. We know this approach works. A new RAND study examined a CalVet pilot that paired housing for formerly homeless veterans with nurses, social workers, and peer support.

Nearly all participants remained housed, emergency room visits dropped 75 percent, and the program cost about half as much as a nursing facility. When political will supports veterans, resources—and results—follow. The same can happen for renters, first-time buyers, and families stretching every paycheck to stay in place.

The bond also funds what matters most in communities like ours. It includes $450 million for farmworker housing, and as the state’s largest agricultural region, the Valley has the strongest claim to those funds. More than $1 billion would help working families buy their first homes, and that downpayment assistance would go further here because the median home costs less than half the statewide average.

The largest share would build new affordable rental homes while allowing older properties to be purchased and renovated. We have had to fight for our fair share of state housing dollars before, and we will keep fighting. But there is no share to claim if the funding does not exist.

Our Collaborative also works to help the market build homes of all kinds—the long-term path to lower prices. But some neighbors cannot wait, and many still cannot afford the homes the market produces. Trouble is cheapest to address upstream; ignored, its costs compound. Bonds carry interest, but that cost is visible and predictable. The cost of inaction compounds quietly and indefinitely. Fortunately, progress compounds too: a stable home can lead to steadier work, better student outcomes, and a stronger neighborhood. Prop 1 puts that momentum on our side.

Consider what Prop 1 would deliver: homes for the veterans who served us; homes for the farmworkers who feed us; and a real path to first-time homeownership for our children. It would also create jobs for Valley construction crews, bring home federal matching dollars, and require independent audits of every dime.

Nearly 40,000 affordable homes statewide are ready to break ground but stalled for lack of funding, so we would not wait years to see results. A stitch in time saves nine. A yes vote on Prop 1 on Nov. 3 would save far more.

Miguel Arambula is executive director of the San Joaquin Valley Housing Collaborative.