Housing

OAKLAND — As part of a coalition of 21 attorneys general and two governors, California Attorney General Rob Bonta today filed a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Fiscal Year 2026 Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Continuum of Care (CoC) Program. CoC is the federal government’s flagship program for funding affordable housing and other services for individuals at risk of and experiencing homelessness. The coalition alleges that HUD’s 2026 CoC NOFO seeks to steer funding away from permanent supportive housing projects, despite a federal court order issued last week blocking HUD’s 2025 CoC NOFO, which sought to divert more than $3 billion in federal funding from those projects. Congress has also acted to protect renewal funding for those projects.

“The Trump Administration is once again trying to undermine HUD's longstanding Housing First approach that has kept and continues to keep our most vulnerable residents housed,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Congress and the courts have made clear that funding for permanent supportive housing must be protected. We will continue fighting to ensure that those who have secured housing stability do not lose it.”

Permanent supportive housing provides long-term housing stability, transitional housing provides temporary shelter intended as a bridge to permanent housing, and supportive service-only projects provide services without housing assistance. In today’s complaint, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island, the coalition argues that:

• HUD’s 2026 CoC NOFO illegally attempts to limit funding for permanent housing by setting aside approximately $1.3 billion for transitional housing and supportive service-only projects. The set-aside would effectively cap permanent housing funding below levels necessary to maintain existing projects. The National Alliance to End Homelessness estimates this could put at least 97,000 residents of CoC-funded permanent housing at risk of losing their housing.
• New scoring criteria in HUD’s 2026 CoC NOFO unlawfully penalizes applicants for continuing to follow HUD’s longstanding Housing First approach by steering funding away from proven low-barrier housing that helps people exit homelessness and toward programs that impose conditions before individuals can access housing.
• These new policies fundamentally undermine CoC’s goal of ensuring that individuals and families who have exited homelessness are not forced back onto the streets, as well as Congress’s directive that HUD prioritize renewal funding to support that same objective. 

In filing today’s complaint, Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

Court rejects City’s lawsuit against California and allows the State to recover attorney’s fees

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today announced that the San Diego County Superior Court rejected the City of Huntington Beach's lawsuit against California over housing law enforcement. Specifically, the court granted an anti-SLAPP motion filed by Attorney General Bonta and the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), finding that the City’s lawsuit challenged the State’s protected enforcement of housing law and lacked merit. 

“Huntington Beach claimed it was immune from state housing laws because it’s a charter city. It lost. It claimed that having to comply with state housing laws violated its First Amendment rights. It lost. Now it's lost on its claim that the State can be sued simply for enforcing state housing law,” said Attorney General Bonta. “No more excuses. It’s time for the City to adopt and implement a lawful housing element.”

In March 2023, Attorney General Bonta, Governor Gavin Newsom, and HCD announced a lawsuit against Huntington Beach for refusing to adopt a compliant housing element. In response, the City pursued a series of delay tactics, including filing a cross-complaint accusing the State of acting unlawfully by bringing the enforcement action. Today's ruling rejects that effort. The court found that the City's cross-complaint arose from the State's protected activity of enforcing California law and that the City failed to demonstrate its claims had even the minimal merit required to survive an anti-SLAPP motion. As a result, the court struck the City's cross-complaint and ruled that the State is entitled to seek recovery of its attorney's fees incurred in defending against it.

The court will next consider additional issues, including the appropriate penalties for the City’s continued failure to comply with the State’s Housing Element Law and a pending affordable housing application, at a hearing scheduled for July 17.

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta and a coalition of 18 other attorneys general and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania yesterday won their case challenging the Trump Administration’s illegal conditions on billions of dollars in funding that community organizations across the country rely on to provide housing and services for families experiencing homelessness. In November 2025, Attorney General Bonta joined the coalition in suing the Trump Administration to protect more than $3 billion in Continuum of Care (CoC) funds that were jeopardized by illegal new conditions imposed by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). These funds support vital resources for those most at risk of homelessness, such as veterans, persons with disabilities, and transgender individuals. The U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island yesterday granted critical parts of the coalition’s motion for summary judgment, ruling that HUD’s conditions restricting CoC funding are unlawful and cannot be implemented. 

“Once again, the Trump Administration’s attempt to cut critical homelessness funding has been rejected,” said Attorney General Bonta. “We should be focused on helping more people on our streets move into stable housing, not undermining the programs that are working to make that happen. So long as HUD continues to pursue efforts to roll back its long-standing Housing First approach, we will stand firm in defending it.”  

In November 2025, HUD issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) containing illegal conditions on CoC grants that threatened funding that coalitions of community organizations receive to provide housing and other support for those experiencing homelessness. The Administration imposed a cap on the amount of CoC funds that can support permanent supportive housing. If enacted, this cap would have slashed CoC funds for permanent supportive housing by two-thirds and put an estimated 170,000 people at risk of losing their homes. After the lawsuit was filed, HUD withdrew the November NOFO but issued a new December 2025 NOFO that largely kept the same challenged funding conditions, so the coalition expanded its challenge to include both notices. 

HUD also imposed other conditions, barring CoC funds from organizations that acknowledge the existence of transgender or nonbinary individuals and excluding programs that provide services for mental disabilities. Attorney General Bonta and the coalition argued in their lawsuit that these conditions violate the Administrative Procedure Act and Congress’ constitutional power to control spending. 

In a decision on Attorney General Bonta and the coalition’s motion for summary judgment, the court yesterday ruled that HUD’s November 2025 and December 2025 NOFOs violate the Administrative Procedure Act and set aside both notices, preventing HUD from implementing the unlawful funding conditions.

Joining Attorney General Bonta in filing this lawsuit were the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia, as well as the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

OAKLAND — As part of a coalition of 19 attorneys general and two governors, California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a supplemental complaint challenging the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Continuum of Care (CoC) Program. CoC is the federal government’s flagship program for funding affordable housing and other services for individuals at risk of and experiencing homelessness. With this filing, the coalition is addressing HUD's latest unlawful actions and updating its existing case, which was filed in November 2025 in response to the 2025 CoC NOF, allowing the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island to efficiently resolve all related claims in one proceeding. In December 2025, the coalition secured a preliminary injunction blocking HUD from implementing the 2025 CoC NOFO, and in April 2026, secured another victory when HUD abandoned its appeal of the preliminary injunction. The coalition alleges that HUD’s new funding notice once again seeks to steer funding away from permanent housing projects, despite a federal court order blocking HUD's previous attempt and Congress’ subsequent action protecting renewal funding for those projects.

“A federal court has already blocked HUD’s unlawful attempt to defund permanent housing projects that are home for more than 400,000 people. Congress has made clear that those projects must be funded at adequate levels,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Instead of following the law, the Trump Administration is again trying to reverse HUD’s decades-long policy of prioritizing housing before advancing other goals. This would jeopardize housing for thousands of people and put them at risk of returning to the streets. We will not stand idly by."

Despite the court victories and Congress’ action, HUD issued a FY 2026 CoC NOFO in June 2026 that again limits funding for permanent housing by setting aside approximately $1.3 billion for transitional housing and supportive service-only projects. In the supplemental complaint, the coalition argues that the set-aside would effectively cap permanent housing funding below levels necessary to maintain existing projects. The National Alliance to End Homelessness estimates this could put at least 97,000 residents of CoC-funded permanent housing at risk of losing their housing. Well over 80% of CoC funds currently go to support permanent housing. The complaint also challenges new scoring criteria that penalize applicants for continuing to follow HUD’s longstanding Housing First approach. The criteria steer funding away from proven low-barrier housing that gets people off the streets and toward programs that impose conditions before people can access housing. The new policies fundamentally undermine CoC's goal of ensuring that individuals and families who have exited homelessness are not forced back onto the streets and Congress’ directive that HUD prioritize renewal funding to achieve this goal.

In filing the supplemental complaint, Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

LOS ANGELES — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today announced the creation of the first-of-its-kind Affordability Response Team within the California Department of Justice (DOJ). The Affordability Response Team will draw on the knowledge of experts from sections across the department, working together to find, investigate, and go after individuals and corporations deploying unlawful practices that are making life unaffordable for the people of California.

“Californians, we hear you: The cost of living is much too high. For many people in our state the cost of a week off work, a set of new tires, or a trip to the grocery store — let alone a mortgage or a visit to the emergency room — are not within reach,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Today, I am proud to announce the launch of my office’s Affordability Response Team. Comprised of legal experts from across DOJ, the Affordability Response Team will work to investigate and go after practices that are unlawfully raising costs. It will create a pipeline to tackle affordability from all angles — whether it be unlawful behavior by corporations, landlords, scammers, or policies that are driving up prices. Hardworking Californians deserve fair prices, deserve the ability to make enough to meet their basic needs — and also deserve to have the experiences, vacations, and joys that make life richer.”

Californians are facing an affordability crisis of epic proportion — and many cannot see a light at the end of the tunnel. Housing shortages, skyrocketing grocery prices, rising healthcare and childcare costs, predatory corporate behavior, and the federal government’s unstable economic policies are all making it difficult not only to cover the basics, but to enjoy many of the things hardworking Americans should be able to afford — like a family vacation or a dinner out. The affordability crisis disproportionately impacts low-income households, communities of color, individuals with disabilities, and young adults. In fact, 23% of California’s young adults ages 18–24 live in poverty. And seven in 10 Californians feel that healthcare expenses place a financial strain on their household.

Because these challenges are entrenched and complex, tackling the affordability crisis requires creative thinking and a willingness to attack the problem from all angles. As the top law enforcement officer of California, Attorney General Bonta has been engaged in work that goes after illegal conduct contributing to rising costs. The creation of the Affordability Response Team will amplify DOJ’s ongoing focus on affordability, to allow this work to continue, create a pipeline for continued enforcement, and signal to bad actors that California is zeroed in on this.

THE AFFORDABILITY CRISIS 

Americans across the country are feeling squeezed by a wall of rising costs.

Already high food prices are predicted to increase by 3.4% over the next year and a growing number of people are skipping meals or relying on food banks because of rising food costs. Utility prices and gas prices have also increased, at the same time, wages have stagnated or declined for many workers. Since 1970’s, wages for the bottom 90% of earners have increased 44%, while wages for the top 1% of earners have risen more than 180%. More Americans are taking on debt because of the rising cost of necessities. Credit card debt in the U.S. by the end of 2025 hit a record of $1.28 trillion — and in the first quarter of this year, the percentage of credit-card balances that were at least 90 days delinquent rose to 13.12%, the highest level in 15 years.

Not all Americans are feeling the squeeze. As most households are trying to figure out how the numbers are supposed to add up for life in America, demand for luxury yachts and private jets is surging. The top 1% of Americans held 32% of America’s wealth and CEO compensation increased by almost 6% to $17.7 million as company boards rewarded their top executives for bigger profits. President Trump has said he doesn’t think about Americans financial situation and his Administration is walking the talk by exacerbating the affordability crisis with its polices. Policies like rolling back antitrust enforcement that holds large corporations accountable, pursuing international policy that leaves consumers feeling pain at the pump, prioritizing tax cuts for wealthier Americans, levying an illegal regime of tariffs, and destroying the agency responsible for protecting Americans from exploitation by big businesses who aren’t playing by the rules. All the while, the President and his own family are profiting wildly from holding public office.

FOCUS AREAS 

The Affordability Response Team will deploy DOJ's tools in these areas:

Keeping the Household Running: Grocery, Gas, and Utility Costs

From cable bills to grocery runs, the household bills Californians grapple with every month seem to be endlessly going up.

Affordability in Action:

• May 2026: Attorney General Bonta Secures End of Unlawful Meat Price Coordination, Announces Settlement with Agri Stats
• April 2026: Naming Names: Attorney General Bonta Secures Public Access to Evidence in Amazon Price Fixing Case

A Roof Over Your Head: Housing & Insurance Costs

Confronting California’s housing shortage, unlawful landlord behavior, and rising home insurance costs.

Affordability in Action:

• February 2026: Attorney General Bonta Announces Settlement with Redding Property Management Company for Violating Tenant Protection Act
• November 2025: Attorney General Bonta Announces $7 Million Settlement with Greystar for Participating in an Algorithmic Rent Alignment Scheme

Relief from Sickening Healthcare Costs

Tackling consolidation in the healthcare industry and the rising costs associated with going to the doctor and paying for prescriptions, so that all Californians can afford the care they need to be well.

Affordability in Action:

• May 2026: Attorney General Bonta Conditionally Approves Proposed Transaction to Ensure Continued Access to Senior Care Services in Fresno County
• March 2026: Attorney General Bonta Opposes Trump Administration’s Proposed Expansion of Catastrophic Health Insurance Plans 

Investing in Our Future: Childcare, Education, & Retirement

Ensuring Californians can care for their families, pursue a livelihood, invest in their future, and plan for every stage of their lives.

Affordability in Action:

• May 2026: Attorney General Bonta Opposes Plan to Weaken Federal Protections for Retirement Investments
• February 2026: Attorney General Bonta Defeats Trump Administration in Court Again, Continues Protecting Over $10 Billion in Child Care and Family Assistance Funding

All Work and Harder to Play: The High Cost of Enjoying Life

From planning a vacation to seeing your favorite band in concert, the joys of life are getting harder and harder to afford. The Affordability Response Team is tackling hidden fees and going after corporate practices hiking up prices for entertainment, tech, and trips.

Affordability in Action:

• April 2026: Attorney General Bonta Celebrates Historic Verdict in Live Nation/Ticketmaster Trial
• July 2024: Attorney General Bonta to Consumers: This Summer, Enjoy California — Without the Hidden Fees

Financial Protection: Protecting Your Hard-Earned Money

Protecting Californians by going after shady practices by big banks, lenders, and policies that unfairly penalize consumers and leave them worse off.

Affordability in Action:

• January 2026: Attorney General Bonta Helps Secure $425 Million Capital One Settlement
• January 2026: We're Going to Need a Bigger Boat: Attorney General Bonta Continues Championing Legislation to Protect California Veterans Against Claim Sharks, Financial Exploitation

Earning Less: Labor, Wages, and the Cost of Doing Business

Championing workers’ rights and maintaining a vibrant, profitable economy go hand in hand.

 Affordability in Action:

• March 2026: Attorney General Bonta Urges Congress to Fix Trump’s Tariff Mess, Refund Americans
• July 2025: Attorney General Bonta Announces Nearly $2 Million Settlement with Janitorial Franchising Companies Barring Use of Franchising to Misclassify Workers

Scams, Scams, Scams!

From social media investment scams to job scams and robocalls, cracking down and sounding the alarm on conduct preying on consumers’ pocketbooks.

Affordability in Action:

• April 2026: All That Glitters isn’t Gold: Attorney General Bonta Warns Californians of LA 2028 Olympic Games Ticket Scams
• August 2025: The Robocall Task Force Strikes Again! Attorney General Bonta Launches Operation Robocall Roundup

Click here to learn more about DOJ’s Recent Affordability Work.

RESOURCES — You Tell Us, What Corporations or Practices Should We Know About?

Housing: The Housing Justice Team reminds Californians that they can send complaints or tips related to housing to oag.ca.gov/report. Tenants who need legal help can find legal aid resources in their area at www.LawHelpCA.org.

Antitrust: Antitrust laws and their enforcement help protect consumers by ensuring businesses compete fairly, which often results in lower prices, higher quality goods, and more innovative products. Use DOJ’s Antitrust Complaint Form to report anticompetitive conduct — like price fixing, collusion, or monopolization concerns — that potentially violate the antitrust laws.

Consumer/Business/Healthcare: If you have a complaint about a business who is not complying with consumer protection or other laws, consumers can visit DOJ’s reporting page to submit a complaint.

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today announced a $4.6 million settlement with Select Portfolio Servicing (SPS), a large sub-prime mortgage servicer operating in California, resolving allegations that the company violated state and federal mortgage servicing and debt collection laws during the COVID-19 pandemic. Today’s settlement includes enforcement of California’s Homeowner Bill of Rights (HBOR), a set of laws that provide protections to homeowners who are facing foreclosure. Under the settlement, subject to court approval, SPS must pay $1.6 million in civil penalties and $3 million in consumer relief, and must implement changes to ensure, among other things, that homeowners receive adequate support and accurate information when seeking loan modifications and other foreclosure-prevention alternatives. 

“Californians are facing a crisis of affordability, and many of our residents struggle every month to keep a roof over their heads. Our state recognized this when it passed strong debt collection and mortgage servicing laws designed to give homeowners a meaningful opportunity to avoid losing their homes amid rough financial patches — patches like the one brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Attorney General Bonta. “My office's settlement with Select Portfolio Servicing resolves our investigation into the company, which found that the mortgage servicer violated these laws amid the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in struggling homeowners not having clarity or accurate information at a time of chaos and financial uncertainty. As part of the settlement, we are proud to secure $3 million that goes right back into the pockets of thousands of impacted homeowners.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, families across California faced difficulty affording rent and mortgage payments, including as a result of layoffs and reduced working hours. In 2021, Attorney General Bonta issued a consumer alert reminding California’s tenants and homeowners of their rights and protections amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

The California Department of Justice’s investigation into SPS, based in part on information provided by Housing and Economic Rights Advocates and California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc., found, among other things, that the company:

• Failed to give homeowners adequate information about COVID-19 forbearance plans, including related to their forbearance exit options and their ability to apply for other loss mitigation options while in forbearance.
• Sent mortgage statements to borrowers on COVID-19 forbearance plans wrongly stating that late fees would be charged for missed payments.
• Failed to have tailored loss mitigation discussions with homeowners nearing the end of their COVID-19 forbearance plans.
• Failed to ensure that homeowners seeking foreclosure prevention alternatives received adequate support from the single points of contact SPS was required to provide under HBOR. 
• Failed to ensure that homeowners could submit loan modification applications according to the timelines and under the circumstances that HBOR allows.

Homeowners eligible to receive restitution from this settlement have already been identified and will receive payment automatically.

What is the California’s Homeowner Bill of Rights?

California’s HBOR provides protections to homeowners facing foreclosure and tenants in foreclosed homes and puts certain responsibilities on mortgage servicers. Key provisions include:

• Notification of Foreclosure-Prevention Options: Your mortgage servicer must try to contact you at least 30 days before starting the foreclosure process to discuss your financial situation and explore your options to avoid foreclosure. Within five days of recording a notice of default, your servicer must generally give you information about options to avoid foreclosure that may be available.
• Acknowledgment of Application: If you apply for a loan modification, your servicer must notify you within five business days of any missing information, other errors, and deadlines for completing your application.
• Guaranteed Single Point of Contact: If you ask for a loan modification or other foreclosure-prevention alternative, your servicer must assign you a specific person or team who can walk you through application requirements and deadlines, knows the facts and status of your application, including missing documents needed to complete your application, and can get you a decision on your application.
• Restrictions on Dual Tracking: Your servicer must generally pause the foreclosure process while it is making a decision on your completed loan-modification application and until after it gives you time to appeal a denial. It also cannot foreclose on you while you are complying with the terms of an approved loan modification, forbearance, repayment plan, or other foreclosure-prevention option.
• Tenant Rights: Purchasers of foreclosed homes must give tenants at least 90 days before starting eviction proceedings. If the tenant has a fixed-term lease that was entered into before the foreclosure sale, the new owner must honor the lease unless certain exceptions apply.

For more information about the Homeowner Bill of Rights, please visit https://oag.ca.gov/hbor. The Housing Justice Team reminds Californians that they can report complaints related to housing to oag.ca.gov/report. Tenants who need legal help can find legal aid resources in their area at www.LawHelpCA.org. 

Alert reminds local governments that California fair housing laws protecting residents with disabilities remain fully in effect following Ninth Circuit ruling

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today, alongside the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) and the California Civil Rights Department (CRD), issued a legal alert reaffirming that California law continues to provide strong antidiscrimination protections for group homes serving people with disabilities following a 2025 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in The Ohio House, LLC v. City of Costa Mesa. The alert advises local governments that HCD’s 2022 guidance on fair housing and land use law remains in effect. California law not only prohibits discrimination against group homes but also requires local governments to affirmatively further fair housing and support housing opportunities for persons with disabilities. The alert warns that local governments relying on the Ohio House decision to adopt or enforce restrictive zoning policies targeting group homes could face liability under California law. 

“California law protects the right of people with disabilities to live in inclusive, community-based housing,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “Today, we’re making clear that local governments cannot use a narrow federal court decision as justification to undermine those expansive protections or exclude vulnerable Californians from their communities. State courts — not federal courts — have the final say on what California law means.” 

“We are grateful to have our partners in the enforcement of California housing law join us in reaffirming there is no place for discrimination against people with disabilities in our state,” said HCD Director Gustavo Velasquez. “To the contrary, local governments have a legal — and moral — obligation to ensure fair housing opportunity for our most vulnerable residents.” 

“California’s civil rights laws are clear that people with disabilities and the organizations that help house them are entitled to reasonable accommodations,” said CRD Director Kevin Kish. “Local governments must comply with state antidiscrimination protections when they serve their constituents, including the vulnerable populations who need the housing environments available in group homes. Local laws, policies, and practices that deny that housing have no place in the Golden State.” 

“Group homes” are homes where unrelated people with disabilities live together and receive peer and other disability-related support, while sharing spaces like kitchens and living areas and participating in daily communal life. Group homes help their residents live in deinstitutionalized settings and integrate into local communities. 

In Ohio House, the Ninth Circuit upheld certain group home regulations adopted by the City of Costa Mesa and rejected plaintiffs’ state and federal claims alleging that the regulations discriminated against persons with disabilities. Since the court declined to fully analyze California’s broader housing and anti-discrimination laws — including the Anti-Discrimination in Land Use Law, Housing Element Law, Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing Law, and critical aspects of California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act — the legal alert clarifies the scope and nature of these state laws. 

The legal alert further emphasizes that California state courts — not federal courts — are the final arbiters of California law, and that federal law does not prevent California from providing greater protections for residents with disabilities. The alert cites longstanding California court decisions broadly interpreting state fair housing protections and warns that restrictive local policies targeting group homes may violate state law and jeopardize local jurisdictions’ housing element compliance certifications or Prohousing Designation status.

Settlement reached ahead of scheduled trial 

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today secured a settlement holding Florida-based MV Realty, its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and its Chief Operating Officer (COO) accountable for operating a predatory scheme that provided immediate cash payments to financially vulnerable homeowners in exchange for the exclusive right to be their listing agent if they ever sold their homes in the next 40 years. The company misled consumers about the terms of these homeowner agreements and deceptively recorded liens on their homes, which prevented homeowners and their successors from transferring their home unless they paid MV Realty tens of thousands of dollars in so-called “early termination fees.” The liens could also impede homeowners from refinancing their homes or getting home equity loans. The settlement requires MV Realty to individually terminate all its liens, pay back homeowners who paid early termination fees, and void its homeowner agreements. It also imposes significant financial penalties and restrictions on its future business activities in California.

“We will not tolerate predatory conduct that targets vulnerable Californians and puts their homes at risk,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “This settlement delivers the relief we sought in our lawsuit, including full restitution for consumers and the complete undoing of the unlawful practices at issue. At a time when Californians are facing an affordability crisis, exploitation like this only adds pressure on households struggling to make ends meet — and it is unacceptable.”

MV Realty began actively operating in California in early 2022. Today’s settlement resolves the lawsuit filed against MV Realty by Attorney General Bonta and the Santa Barbara County and Napa County District Attorneys’ Offices in December 2023. In September 2024, they secured a preliminary injunction against MV Realty, which was upheld on appeal in December 2025, requiring the company to terminate its liens. Trial was scheduled to begin on June 10, 2026 in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County.

“MV Realty placed profits ahead of people by taking advantage of struggling homeowners and locking them into decades-long agreements by employing deceptive and unlawful business practices,” said Napa County District Attorney Allison Haley. “It was a privilege to work with our colleagues at the Attorney General’s Office and the Santa Barbara District Attorney’s Office in obtaining a settlement that holds MV Realty accountable, provides meaningful relief to impacted homeowners, and reinforces that California will take action against predatory practices that exploit the financially vulnerable.”

“The Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office was proud to team with the Attorney General’s Office and the Napa County DA’s Office in getting relief for Californians who were victimized by a predatory scheme that took advantage of people who were already struggling financially,” said Santa Barbara County District Attorney John T. Savrnoch. “Californians have a right to expect that when they contract with a real estate company that the company will act in their best interests.  This settlement provides an example of how California authorities will respond when a company fails in its duties to its customers by trying to take advantage of them through a predatory and unfair scheme.”

As a result of the settlement:

• All homeowner contracts are void.
• MV Realty must individually terminate all liens.
• MV Realty, its CEO, and its COO are prohibited from engaging in any business in California that requires a real estate license for 5 years.
• MV Realty must pay full restitution to consumers, totaling over $1.3 million as well as nearly $1.2 million in civil penalties, for a total monetary judgment of $2.5 million.

A number of states, including California, have passed legislation prohibiting fraudulent schemes like the one MV Realty engaged in. In October 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law AB 1345, which went into effect on January 1, 2024. Sponsored by Attorney General Bonta, AB 1345 imposes a two-year limit on residential exclusive listing agreements and clarifies that these agreements cannot be filed with a county recorder.

In September 2023, MV Realty filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida. The court dismissed the bankruptcy in May 2024.

State court orders Huntington Beach to pay civil penalties of at least $160,000, escalating to $50,000 per month starting this June 

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Governor Gavin Newsom today issued the following statements after the San Diego Superior Court imposed civil penalties on the City of Huntington Beach in the amount of $160,000, followed by $50,000 per month beginning June 2026, until the City cures its violation of California’s Housing Element law. Under the Housing Element Law, every city and county in California must periodically update its housing plan to meet its Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) or share of the regional and statewide housing needs. Today’s penalties stem from a 2023 lawsuit filed by the State against Huntington Beach.  

“Huntington Beach has obstinately and illegally refused to do its part to address our state’s housing crisis, and today, it’s paying for it," said Attorney General Rob Bonta. "This civil penalty is a costly lesson for Huntington Beach that drives home the truth we've known all along: No city is above the law. Huntington Beach must stop wasting public funds and avoiding its responsibilities to the public. We expect Huntington Beach to heed the court order and finally step up to serve its residents. At the California Department of Justice, we will continue to do our part to uphold the law and fight for affordable housing for all Californians.”

“Huntington Beach officials are failing their community by wasting time and vast sums of taxpayer dollars to defend clearly unlawful NIMBY policies and fight against affordability,” said Governor Gavin Newsom. "Citizens in this community should be appalled by their city leaders’ actions here which will cost them hundreds of thousands of dollars in penalties, with more growing each month. No more excuses — every city must follow state law and do its part to build more housing.”

On March 9, 2023, Attorney General Bonta, Governor Newsom, and California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) Director Gustavo Velasquez filed a lawsuit in state court against Huntington Beach for failing to timely adopt a compliant housing element. On December 19, 2025, the State secured a decision from the San Diego Superior Court requiring the City of Huntington Beach to, among other things, adopt a housing element within 120 days and restricting the City’s land use authority, effective immediately, until that requirement is satisfied.

Now, with Huntington Beach more than 4.5 years behind schedule, the Court has ordered the city to pay $10,000 per month for each month since January 2025, totaling $160,000. Penalties will then increase to $50,000 a month beginning in June 2026, until the city cures its violations of state housing law. These penalties are consistent with Senate Bill (SB) 1037 (Weiner, 2024) which was sponsored by Attorney General Bonta and enhanced the Attorney General’s ability to seek civil penalties in court against local governments that violate state housing law.

In response to the State’s lawsuit, the City of Huntington Beach filed a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of certain California housing laws. The City’s lawsuit was dismissed by the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit unanimously affirmed the district court’s dismissal, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit then denied the City’s petition for rehearing en banc. The City asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the aforementioned rulings, and that request was also denied.

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today issued the following statement after the Trump Administration dropped its appeal of a court decision upholding a preliminary injunction that blocked funding restrictions the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) attempted to place on its Continuum of Care (CoC) grant program. CoC is the federal government’s flagship program for funding affordable housing and other services for individuals at risk of and experiencing homelessness. As part of a coalition of 19 attorneys general and two governors, Attorney General Bonta sued the Trump Administration in November 2025 over the planned funding restrictions and secured a preliminary injunction from the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island blocking those changes. In February 2026, the Trump Administration filed a motion to dissolve the preliminary injunction, which the District Court denied. The Trump Administration appealed the ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, which earlier this month, rejected HUD’s request to temporarily allow the restrictions to go into effect.

“We continue to fight for Californians and the rule of law, and we continue to win. HUD’s unlawful funding restrictions have been rejected by the courts, and because the Trump Administration has now dropped its appeal, our preliminary injunction remains in effect while the case proceeds to summary judgment,” said Attorney General Bonta. “People experiencing housing insecurity or homelessness need the federal government’s continued support — not a rollback of assistance. We will continue to closely monitor the Administration’s actions, seek accountability when the law is not followed, and litigate this case to the very end.”

Among other things, HUD has tried to dramatically reduce the amount of grant funds that could be spent on permanent housing and to penalize housing providers for recognizing gender identity and diversity. HUD has also attempted to disadvantage programs that address mental disabilities and substance use disorders. These conditions went against the explicit intent of Congress and HUD’s previous guidance.