Our History

With a mission to build permanent, supportive housing with site-based services that offer opportunities to change lives and strengthen communities, People’s Self-Help Housing is the longest-serving nonprofit housing organization on California’s Central Coast.

Following the landmark legislation of the Fair Housing Act in 1968, a small group of concerned citizens and local community leaders, wanted to address the lack of housing available to low-income and special-needs households. This grassroots effort gave birth to People’s Self-Help Housing, which incorporated in 1970. Learning of a USDA program to finance the construction of owner-built housing, PSHH enlisted a group of families to build homes through the sweat equity process. Working side by side and contributing their labor in place of a down payment, these “pioneers” were the first PSHH owner-builders.

In the mid-80s, responding to the growing needs of the community, PSHH then moved into the development of rental housing. The next four decades saw us adding over 2,000 rental units through new construction, preservation, and rehabilitation. Combined with vital and much needed supportive services, which we began to add in the 1990s, our neighborhoods now provide housing to over 5,000 individuals.

We are an organization of over 200 employees serving communities in four counties throughout the Central Coast. To learn more about our work, read our Impact Report.