California spends a lot on education, yet teachers can’t afford to live near their schools 

When I was a teacher in Oakland, I made a decent salary but lived in an apartment with rats. It was what I could afford.

The gap between what we pay teachers and how they actually live is characteristic of the education system: California spends a lot on its schools, but those dollars don’t buy what they should.

We are the national leader in average teacher pay ($103,552) and rank 16th in per-student spending ($20,898). Yet most California teachers worry about paying rent or a mortgage. And we still have some of the nation’s largest class sizes.

The housing market helps explain why. Earning six figures is still not enough for 84% of California’s teachers to live near their schools, according to a survey commissioned by the California Teachers Association. It’s also hard for schools to afford as many teachers as they need, because districts are effectively paying a housing “tax” to employ their workforce.

A mid-tier California home costs about $775,000, more than twice the typical mid-tier home elsewhere in the United States, the state Legislative Analyst’s Office reports. Meanwhile California’s rents are highest in the nation, about 54% above the national average, the Bureau of Economic Analysis says.

That math plays out differently in other states.

Texas — California’s big, red state counterpart — has rents below the national average, pays teacher salaries $40,000 lower and spends $8,000 less per student. It has six fewer students per teacher, performs about as well as California on national tests and its fourth-graders do better in math.

Massachusetts, a blue state education leader, has rents about 17% lower than California’s, pays its teachers $10,000 less, and spends $7,000 more per student. It has 10 fewer students per teacher and significantly outperforms California on tests — no doubt a combined function of increased spending and an environment that helps funding go further.

Housing is not the only reason school dollars stretch differently across states, but it is a major reason California’s high spending buys less staffing than taxpayers might expect. 

Some districts are addressing the problem by building their own housing. 

Jefferson Union High, a small district in the Bay Area, built a 122-unit complex that now houses a quarter of district staff and is credited with reducing teacher turnover. Meanwhile, San Francisco Unified spent nearly seven years permitting and building 135 units for more than 1,200 district applicants. 

Projects like these have an impact on teachers who get a unit, but they’re unlikely to happen on a scale needed to help most teachers or to shift the cost landscape so districts can hire more teachers.

Of course, school funding and education policy matter, too. Evidence shows increased state spending in the past decade has boosted achievement and that community schools improve student outcomes. California is moving in the right direction to strengthen education governance, improve reading instruction and serve English learners well. 

Still, school budgets would go further in making this happen if there were enough cheap housing around for staff, students and families. The next governor will need organized pressure and a broad coalition to make a difference in housing policy. 

The education community should be active supporters. School boards, unions, PTAs, advocacy groups and prominent voices should back housing production the way they back any education priority: through bill endorsements, public statements and coalition advocacy.

There also needs to be political support on the ground. When local opposition attacks new apartments, faster construction approvals or denser development near transit, education leaders should back the projects up with some version of, “These reforms are part of what it takes to staff schools, stabilize families and sustain public education.”

California cannot fund its way to great schools without building the communities those schools require. That makes housing an education issue.