About LeaseBase Housing Foundation

Who We Are

LeaseBase Housing Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Sacramento, California. We work to preserve affordable housing by strengthening the independent landlords who provide it.

Our core conviction is that the affordable housing crisis in California cannot be solved by new construction alone. The existing stock of naturally occurring affordable housing — rental units that are affordable not because of a government subsidy but because small, independent landlords have maintained rents that working families can afford — is being lost faster than new subsidized housing can replace it.

We believe the most cost-effective preservation strategy available is to keep independent landlords in the market longer, operating better, with greater knowledge and better tools.

Our Mission

To preserve affordable housing and prevent displacement by equipping independent landlords with the education, technology, and support they need to operate sustainably and in compliance with California law.

What We Do

LeaseBase Housing Foundation operates three integrated programs:

Technology Access: We provide free and subsidized access to professional property management software for independent landlords managing 10 or fewer units. The technology gap between small and large operators is one of the most underappreciated drivers of small landlord exit.

Education and Capacity Building: We offer workshops, webinars, and one-on-one compliance consultations covering California landlord-tenant law, AB 1482 and local rent ordinances, fair housing law, maintenance standards, and financial management. Our programs are designed for landlords, not legal professionals.

Research and Advocacy: We conduct original research on landlord retention and naturally occurring affordable housing, and translate our findings into advocacy with local governments, state legislators, and housing agencies.

Our History

LeaseBase Housing Foundation was established in 2026 in Sacramento, California. The Foundation emerged from practical experience with the challenges facing independent landlords — the administrative burden, regulatory complexity, and lack of accessible support systems that drive capable, well-intentioned landlords out of the affordable housing market.

Our founders observed that California’s housing policy debate focused extensively on new construction — zoning, entitlements, density — while paying insufficient attention to the preservation of existing affordable housing and the small landlords who provide it. We founded the Foundation to fill this gap.

We are a young organization with an ambitious mission. Our programs are operational, our research agenda is in progress, and our advocacy work is beginning. We welcome partnerships with housing authorities, community development organizations, legal aid providers, and policy researchers who share our commitment to affordable housing preservation.

Our Values

Evidence over advocacy: We start with research and follow the evidence, even when findings are uncomfortable or challenge prevailing policy assumptions.

Practical over theoretical: Our programs are designed to produce actionable results — a landlord who completes our fair housing training should be able to conduct a compliant application process. A landlord who attends our financial management workshop should be able to set up proper income and expense tracking.

Landlord support is tenant support: We are a landlord-serving organization, but we are ultimately motivated by tenant outcomes. Landlords who stay in the market, maintain their properties, and operate lawfully are the mechanism through which affordability is preserved for tenants.

Independence: We accept no funding from sources with a commercial interest in any particular policy outcome. Our research and advocacy reflect our analysis, not the interests of our funders.

Our Community

We are based in Sacramento and serve the greater Sacramento region, including Elk Grove, Roseville, Folsom, and Rancho Cordova. We also serve independent landlords in the Central Valley (Stockton, Fresno) and the Bay Area (Oakland).

Our geographic focus reflects where the need is greatest relative to available support resources — we target markets where independent landlords are significant providers of affordable housing but lack access to the education and technology resources available to landlords in higher-capacity markets.

Financial Transparency

LeaseBase Housing Foundation was established in 2026. As a new organization, our first IRS Form 990 will be filed for fiscal year 2026. We are committed to full financial transparency.

How we allocate funds:

• 70% — Direct program delivery (technology access, workshops, compliance consultations)
• 20% — Research and content development (housing data analysis, educational materials)
• 10% — Administration and operations

Our annual report and Form 990 will be published on this page when available. In the meantime, donors may contact us for additional financial information.

Contact

LeaseBase Housing Foundation 2612 Kokanee Way, Sacramento, CA 95826

Email: rachid@leasebasefoundation.org Website: leasebasefoundation.org

We welcome inquiries from:

• Independent landlords seeking program services
• Housing authorities and community development organizations interested in partnership
• Researchers studying landlord behavior and housing affordability
• Donors and funders aligned with our mission
• Media seeking comment on housing preservation policy

Non-Discrimination Policy

LeaseBase Housing Foundation does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status in any of its programs, services, or activities. All Foundation programs are open to eligible participants regardless of background.

View our board of directors →

Privacy Policy · Terms of Service