State Sen. Catherine Blakespear presented a $1.67 million state funding check to San Diego County on Thursday, Feb. 12, to support affordable housing for veterans, according to an announcement from her office.
The funds are earmarked for the county’s Homelessness Prevention Landlord Incentive Program, which makes direct payments to landlords to lower rental costs for veterans who qualify for housing assistance through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Supportive Housing program.
Blakespear, D-38th District, handed the check on Feb. 12 to San Diego County Supervisor Paloma Aguirre, who serves as chair pro tem of the county Board of Supervisors. The state investment is intended to help more landlords participate in the program by reducing financial barriers that can discourage renting to voucher holders.
“The landlord incentive program reduces barriers that keep people from renting an apartment,” Blakespear said in a news release. “Landlords need a security deposit and the assurance that any damage to the unit will be covered, among other things, in order to rent their units. I am thrilled that I was able to secure state funding to support a system for the men and women who have served this country to get quickly into places to live.”
San Diego County previously allocated about $683,900 in landlord incentives in 2025, a figure that helped secure housing for 243 veterans through the program. The new state funds will expand that effort, officials said.
Once a landlord agrees to rent to a veteran using a VASH voucher, a lease is signed and rental assistance begins. Payments are made directly to the landlord and can cover costs such as security deposits, application fees and leasing bonuses, according to the county.
Aguirre described the funding as a shift toward preventing homelessness by helping people stay housed. Veterans at risk of or experiencing homelessness can apply for support through the federal VA program, which allows them to use the voucher to search for housing on the open rental market.
“We are incredibly grateful to Senator Blakespear for her leadership in securing this $1.67 million investment for the County of San Diego’s Homeless Prevention Landlord Incentive Program,” Aguirre said in the news release. “This isn’t just a win for the balance sheet — it’s a lifeline for San Diegans. It is far more humane and fiscally responsible to keep a roof over someone’s head today than to build a shelter bed tomorrow, and this funding allows us to move from reactive crisis management to proactive prevention.”
San Diego County has about 190,000 veterans living in the region, the third highest population of veterans in the U.S., according to Blakespear’s announcement. The county’s 115,000 active-duty military personnel is also the largest concentration of military members in any county in the nation.
This report was partially written using artificial intelligence, then edited and fact-checked against source material. View our AI policy on the About Us page.
