COVERAGE INFORMATION:
California Department of Real Estate (DRE) NEWS CLIPS service coverage:
Monday through Friday (except state holidays) each week includes electronic format articles retrieved from newspapers or news services that report real estate related news in California and some national services. Coverage is for California newspapers that are available electronically via the Internet - and any significant related breaking news.
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Copyright © , California Department of Real Estate
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Thursday, August 20, 2026
Top Stories
Key takeaways from investigation into Edison’s role in the deadly Eaton fire
MELODY PETERSEN, Los Angeles Times
Recently revealed evidence from government investigators and court filings renewed questions about Southern California Edison’s claim that it operated its electrical grid safely before last year’s deadly Eaton fire.
Most records surrounding the fire’s cause have been sealed at the request of Edison and plaintiff attorneys. Yet new details revealed in court show that critical fire prevention equipment needed repair before the blaze and that vegetation under the tower where it ignited hadn’t been trimmed for years.
Inside California Forever’s high-pressure push to fast-track a shipyard
YUE STELLA YU & KATE WOLFFE
Last September, at their final meeting before the legislative session ended, Solano County supervisors were pressed to endorse state legislation — right away.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office had blessed a legislative proposal to fast-track a new shipyard along the Northern California county’s waterfront, and supervisors needed to decide if they would support it. But the board had just received the draft language hours before, so, after a 15-minute break to read the documents and an hour of public commentary, Supervisor Wanda Williams asked whether she could suggest changes.
National News
Where commercial real estate demand is the highest, according to new data
DIANA OLICK, CNBC
South Carolina ranks highest among all U.S. states in future potential demand for commercial real estate. That is the finding of a new index from the National Association of Realtors, which aims to be a crystal ball for commercial real estate investors. It uses factors in local economies to indicate future demand.
The index looks at more than 300 metropolitan markets, with separate measures for the office, industrial, retail and multifamily sectors, and measures the economic conditions of each region. The Realtors use government data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Census Bureau for population and migration, which it says informs the rankings.
California News
How nearly 2 million California homes must adjust landscaping under just-approved wildfire rule
JULIE JOHNSON, San Francisco Chronicle
After years of delays and pushback, California regulators approved major new rules requiring millions of property owners to limit plants and other flammable materials within 5 feet of homes.
The California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection voted 8-0 to pass the long-awaited rules — called Zone 0 — on Wednesday. Here is what to know about the new rules.
Bay Area city plans 2,300 homes on former Navy base. A dispute over 25 vouchers could stall them
J.K. DINEEN, San Francisco Chronicle
Over a decade, Alameda Point has gone from a mothballed Navy base to a bustling waterfront neighborhood.
Nearly 700 housing units have been completed. Residents and workers are whisked to and from San Francisco from a ferry terminal. Playing fields and gyms attract pickleballers and youth soccer and basketball teams. A food bank provides grains and veggies for more than 1,200 families. Meanwhile, “Spirits Alley” features distilleries, breweries and wineries.
But city officials say the next phases of development — which could include as many as 2,300 additional housing units, 25% of which would be affordable — are in jeopardy because of a dispute with the Housing Authority of the City of Alameda about how federal rent assistance vouchers can be transferred.
Industry News
The new real estate must-have for the super rich? Secrecy
JILLIAN D’ONFRO, The San Francisco Standard
When OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was the victim of back-to-back attacks on his San Francisco home this spring, including a Molotov cocktail hurled at his front gate, it was the worst nightmare come to life for a certain echelon of Bay Area homeowners.
The Russian Hill mansion has been somewhat of a curse for Altman, who gained widespread attention in 2024 when his team filed a lawsuit against the builder, claiming he’d purchased a “lemon.” Once someone’s name is publicly tied to a property, the risks ratchet up.
“Visibility is seen as a liability,” said real estate agent Ken DeLeon. “The inherent desire for privacy has been accelerated because of the controversy around AI.”
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