Maria and Her Tiny House
Maria Saldaña, Sonoma Valley Commons Housing Programs Manager and long-term housing and farmworker advocate, shares how losing her family's homes during the 2008 housing crisis shaped her understanding of housing and set her on a career path focused on improving housing conditions for families like hers, and embarking on the DIY housing solution she is currently undertaking.
Today, as she prepares to welcome a child of her own, she is building a tiny home with the help of her brother. She is building it down the street from her parent’s house in Graton in the parking lot of a church until it can be moved to her husband Abran’s family’s property in Pengrove, where they currently live, and can more conveniently finish construction. Its permanent location remains uncertain as they search for an affordable piece of land where they can place it and live long-term.
Maria grew up in Cotati on a three-acre property with her four siblings and parents. Like many children, she took for granted the stability that came with having a place to call home. Home was where life happened, and she never imagined it could disappear. In 2008, during the housing market crash, everything changed. Her father, an up-and-coming developer, had invested in several homes with the hope of building a better future for the family. Like many people at the time, he was encouraged to take on loans he did not fully understand. When the market collapsed, the family lost three homes through two bankruptcies.
“The loss of our home shaped the course of my life more than I realized at the time. It planted a question that would stay with me for years: Why is something as fundamental as housing so difficult for so many people to secure?"
— Maria Saldaña
As she got older, that question followed her into her education and career. While working at a check-cashing business, Maria met hundreds of farmworkers who worked long hours yet struggled to afford housing. Many lived in crowded conditions, rented rooms, slept on couches, or shared garages while sending money home to support their families. Their stories challenged her understanding of housing and inspired her to pursue a Master's degree in Urban and Public Affairs, where she focused on farmworker housing and quality of life.
Since then, Maria has dedicated her career to housing advocacy, focusing on farmworker housing and housing affordability throughout Sonoma and Napa Counties. While she worked on housing professionally, the issue was deeply personal. During the pandemic, she discovered woodworking. Later, she learned welding and began developing construction skills. As housing costs continued to rise, she found myself asking the same question many young adults ask: How will I ever afford a home of my own?
"I spend part of my days working on housing affordability for Sonoma Valley, and then drive to Graton to build my own house. It's given me a completely different perspective on permitting complexity, financing challenges, rising construction costs, labor shortages, infrastructure requirements, and land constraints.”
— Maria Saldaña
In 2023, Maria decided to build her way out of housing insecurity. With the help of her brother Ricardo, who is a general contractor with RMB BUILDERS, she began building a tiny home. The home is entirely customized, and coming together slowly as she pieces together funding from the money she earns working. Construction currently takes place in the parking lot of a church near her parents' home while she and her husband live on his family’s property and search for a small piece of land they can afford, hoping it will be in or near Sonoma Valley.
Along the way, Maria has learned woodworking, welding, framing, and countless lessons through trial and error. Her brother’s building experience and help on the project gives her the assurance that it’s all possible. Building the home on wheels has also become one way of navigating California's permitting landscape.
“Today, with a growing family and a baby on the way, housing means even more to me than it did when I was a child. Housing is more than a structure. It is stability. It is safety. It is opportunity. It is the foundation from which people build their lives, raise their families, and contribute to their communities.”
— Maria Saldaña
Curated by The Future Collective, photos by Kayla Schmah