About the publisher: It's easy to say, “Build more affordable housing.” But implementing it is a different matter entirely. (“Housing shortage is driving more and more seniors onto the streets. It's a problem for all of us,” editorial, June 24)

Commercial developers generally have no interest. There is no profit to be made, except in the form of a density bonus for including affordable housing. But developers don't want to manage those units.

Nonprofits are also struggling, as recent articles in the LA Times show. While nonprofits are generally better at providing monitoring and support services, they struggle to fund these projects.

Building is expensive in California. We have strict building codes designed to withstand earthquakes and other natural disasters. Land in urban areas is becoming increasingly expensive because developers pay full price for land, have to tear down improvements, and then recoup the costs.

Financing an affordable housing project comes from multiple sources. Multiple levels of financing mean that multiple attorneys will review the transaction and bill for their time, although the terms of the financing are non-negotiable.

Single-source government funding is part of the answer, but no single agency can provide it. Article 34 of our state constitution requires a referendum on government-funded affordable housing, adding the cost of an election to the process without any guarantee that voters will approve.

The first step is to overcome all these obstacles. A proposal to abolish Article 34 has been dropped. What now?

June Ailin Sewell, Marina del Rey

The author is a lawyer who has worked on affordable housing projects.

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About the publisher: Your editorial on solutions to California's growing senior homelessness is conspicuously absent from any mention of rent control.

Yes, we need to create more housing faster – but affordable housing, not more luxury housing. And if we provide modest rent subsidies when necessary to keep people in their homes, we could prevent many seniors and others from becoming homeless and ending up on the streets.

However, keeping people in their existing homes through appropriate rent control measures may be the safest tool in a multi-pronged strategy to combat homelessness.

This November, Californians will have the opportunity to vote on the Justice for Renters Act, a bill that would override an existing statewide ban on rent control. For a newspaper that has twice supported similar statewide rent control initiatives, it's odd that the Times here fails to mention rent control as another important tool to combat affordable housing and homelessness.

Ged Kenslea, Los Angeles

The author is senior communications director for the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, the sponsor of the rent control referendum.