Note: This story is part of Squeezed Out, a series from Lee Enterprises that focuses on the escalating housing crisis in the West. Across the region, costs associated with renting or buying property have skyrocketed, forcing many individuals and families to redefine the meaning of home. More than one dozen reporters, photographers and editors across the West contributed to this project.
Landlords are jumping into the frenzy and selling rental properties, driving apartment availability down and rents up. “I was very discouraged,” Padilla said. “We’re trying to build a life here and be a part of the community … but Napa is trying to push us out. It felt like we weren’t welcome.”“I knew that was the game we were playing,” Padilla said. “The listing price was never the asking price; it was the starting price.”
Caroline Helper pulls down the shades in the baby’s room at the house she and her husband, Adam Padilla, bought back in December in Napa on Sunday. Ms. Helper and Mr. Padilla were finally able to buy a “fixer upper” home after an exhaustive search. Caroline Helper and Adam Padilla along with their new born baby, Ezra, are seen in the kitchen of the home they purchased back in December in Napa on Sunday. Ms. Helper and Mr. Padilla were finally able to buy a “fixer upper” home after an exhaustive search.
Caroline Helper and Adam Padilla along with their new born baby, Ezra, are seen in a room that they hope to convert into an open sun porch at the home they purchased back in December in Napa on Sunday. Ms. Helper and Mr. Padilla were finally able to buy a “fixer upper” home after an exhaustive search.
Caroline Helper pulls down the shades in the baby’s room at the house she and her husband, Adam Padilla, bought back in December in Napa on Sunday. Ms. Helper and Mr. Padilla were finally able to buy a “fixer upper” home after an exhaustive search. Caroline Helper and Adam Padilla along with their new born baby, Ezra, are seen in the kitchen of the home they purchased back in December in Napa on Sunday. Ms. Helper and Mr. Padilla were finally able to buy a “fixer upper” home after an exhaustive search.
Caroline Helper and Adam Padilla along with their new born baby, Ezra, are seen in a room that they hope to convert into an open sun porch at the home they purchased back in December in Napa on Sunday. Ms. Helper and Mr. Padilla were finally able to buy a “fixer upper” home after an exhaustive search.