When the coronavirus began spreading across the United States, health officials advised people to stay home and shelter-in-place, to protect themselves and slow the spread of the virus. But what about the people who have no home, no place to shelter? This question became particularly urgent in California where, on any given night, more than 150,000 people live on the streets, in RVs and in crowded shelters. In this episode, hear how after years of debate and studying solutions, the state of California was forced to plunge millions of dollars into hotels to move people like Sonja from the street to a hotel room. We’ll also learn about the roots of California’s homeless crisis. And as the state looks to purchase hotels to house more people, we’ll hear from a hotel owner who in 2016 managed to transform his hotel into permanently supportive housing.

Read the transcript: https://bit.ly/3iRVEIG

Tents, evictions, long commutes and gentrification — our nation’s housing crisis has been long in the making as spiraling housing costs crush the American Dream for all but the wealthy. SOLD OUT reimagines what housing can be by examining California, the epicenter of the housing affordability crisis. Meet the dreamers and doers who are finding their own solutions to high housing costs because we can’t afford to wait. Hosted by KQED's Erin Baldassari and Molly Solomon.

The first episode of SOLD OUT comes out on Monday, September 21st. Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR One, or wherever you get your shows.