What YIMBY Action does

YIMBY Action is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization founded in 2017 and headquartered in San Francisco, California, that operates a national network of pro-housing grassroots advocacy chapters. The organization runs 67 chapters across 25 states with tens of thousands of activist members, organized under a model that pairs locally branded chapters with shared national infrastructure for training, technology, press support, and coordinated policy campaigns. Its core offerings include a chapter network, housing proposal support services for developers facing NIMBY opposition, pro-housing policy advocacy and lobbying, election endorsements and candidate campaigning, membership with voting rights and Slack community access, events and training, and educational content via a blog and policy platform.

The organization's revenue model rests on individual donations and membership contributions ($5+/month or $35+/year) channeled through its 501(c)(4) entity, supplemented by tax-deductible donations, employer matching, stock gifts, and foundation grants accepted through its affiliated 501(c)(3) "Yes In My Back Yard." Technology infrastructure includes Airtable-based chapter management, Slack for the national member community, email and SMS activism platforms for mobilization, and the AI tool Listen Public for identifying housing proposals requiring support. The affiliated YIMBY Law organization provides legal enforcement of state housing laws through litigation against non-compliant cities.

YIMBY Action's market positioning targets the U.S. housing shortage of at least 3.85 million homes, which it cites as costing the economy approximately $2 trillion annually. It serves four primary stakeholder groups: housing advocates and activists, volunteer chapter leaders, pro-housing political candidates and elected officials, and housing developers and builders seeking organized constituent support to counter local opposition. Cumulative reported impact includes 66,457 homes unblocked through advocacy, 287 pro-housing candidates elected to office, and 148 pro-housing policies enacted into law.

Name

YIMBY Action

Legal name

YIMBY Action

Website

https://yimbyaction.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

YIMBY Action is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit that runs a national network of 67 pro-housing advocacy chapters across 25 states, mobilizing tens of thousands of activists to pass housing policies, elect pro-housing candidates, and support development projects through grassroots organizing and lobbying.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Grassroots Housing Advocacy

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries (BPAGAKAE)

Keywords

• Housing policy advocacy
• Grassroots organizing
• Zoning reform activism
• Nonprofit advocacy services
• Community organizing networks

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Membership Contributions: YIMBY Action generates revenue primarily through donations from individual members. Official membership requires monthly ($5+/month) or annual ($35+/year) donations. The organization also accepts one-time and major gifts. As a 501(c)(4) nonprofit, contributions are not tax deductible but fund unlimited lobbying and political campaign activities. The affiliated 501(c)(3), Yes In My Back Yard, accepts tax-deductible donations for education and non-political activities.
2. Employer Matching and Stock Gifts: Donations to the affiliated 501(c)(3) Yes In My Back Yard are eligible for employer matching through Benevity and Brightfunds. Stock donations are also accepted via the 501(c)(3). These mechanisms expand the donor base and increase contribution value for supporters whose employers match charitable gifts.
3. Foundation Grants: YIMBY Action receives foundation giving to support thought leadership and field-building programs. Foundation funding supports research, advocacy infrastructure, and organizational capacity building. Contact for foundation giving is via email to [email protected].

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

YIMBY Action is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit that operates a national network of grassroots pro-housing chapters delivering advocacy, candidate endorsement, and housing-proposal organizing services. Members gain access via recurring donations (starting at $5/month or $35/year) and receive voting rights in endorsement votes plus community access, while developers and pro-housing candidates access separate programs for project support and political organizing.

Product overview

YIMBY Action is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization operating as a network of grassroots housing advocacy chapters across the United States. Rather than a traditional SaaS product, YIMBY Action's offerings center on organizing programs: its Chapter Network connects local housing advocacy groups nationwide, supplemented by Housing Proposal Support, Pro-Housing Policy Advocacy campaigns, an Election Endorsements process, Events and Training programs, and a Membership Program with voting rights and Slack community access. The organization also publishes blog content and maintains Identity Groups for marginalized communities. Its affiliated 501(c)(3) organization, Yes In My Back Yard, handles tax-deductible donations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• YIMBY Jewish: Identity group for YIMBYs who hold Jewish identities
• YIMBY Latinx
• YIMBY Veterans & Military Families
• YIMBY Women
• ZIMBYs (Gen Z YIMBYs)

Products and services

• YIMBY Action Membership Program Official membership offering for individuals who donate at least $5 per month or $35 per year, granting voting rights in the endorsements process and access to a national online community on Slack. Intended for individual pro-housing advocates and activists seeking to influence local, state, and federal housing policy.
• Housing Proposal Support Service Program that mobilizes YIMBY Action chapter members to provide organized community support for individual housing development proposals seeking local approval. Developers initiate engagement through the website's 'Request Support for Housing Proposal' form; YIMBY Action then coordinates constituent pressure in favor of the project.
• Pro-Housing Policy Advocacy and Lobbying Direct lobbying and political campaign services advancing pro-housing laws at the state and federal level, including coordinated constituent pressure campaigns (calls, emails, texts, lobby days). Recent examples include driving 10,303+ calls and thousands of emails/texts in support of California SB 79.
• Election Endorsement Process Member-driven endorsement and campaign support service for pro-housing political candidates running for local, state, and federal offices, including voter guides for primary and general elections.
• Events and Training Programs National and local convenings including local chapter meetups, Pro-Housing Lab regional conventions (e.g., Pro-Housing Lab Chicago), state capitol lobby days, public hearings, candidate forums, and policy training workshops for members and volunteer leaders.
• Yes In My Back Yard (Tax-Deductible Giving Program) Tax-deductible donation program operated through YIMBY Action's affiliated 501(c)(3) Yes In My Back Yard (Tax ID 32-0610451). Accepts one-time and recurring gifts, employer-matching through Benevity and Brightfunds, and stock donations, funding education and non-political activities.
• YIMBY Action Merchandise Shop Online shop selling YIMBY apparel and home goods, used as a revenue stream and brand-awareness channel that spreads YIMBY messaging and starts conversations about housing.

Quantifiable outcome

• 66,457 homes unblocked through advocacy efforts
• +4 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• YIMBY LawflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerYIMBY Law is the enforcement arm and sister organization of the pro-housing movement, created when SF BARF split in 2017. YIMBY Law handles legal enforcement of state housing laws by suing non-compliant cities, provides educational programming, and reports on housing policy impact. YIMBY Action and YIMBY Law work in concert across all 67 chapters in 25 states to facilitate community organizing for housing proposals and pro-housing policy.
• Yes In My Back Yard (YIMBY, 501(c)(3) affiliate)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerYes In My Back Yard is YIMBY Action's affiliated 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. It accepts tax-deductible donations (Tax ID 32-0610451), handles employer matching through Benevity and Brightfunds, accepts stock donations, and focuses on education, administrative advocacy, and non-political activities. 501(c)(3) funds may not be used for political activities and lobbying, which remain the domain of YIMBY Action.
• Housing Action Coalition (California)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerA key California-based partner organization in the broader YIMBY coalition. Housing Action Coalition collaborates on legislative campaigns including SB 79, providing strategic coordination and constituent mobilization support alongside YIMBY Action, California YIMBY, and other partners.
• California YIMBYcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerA major California-based YIMBY organization that is part of the coordinated coalition working on state-level legislative campaigns. California YIMBY co-sponsored and supported SB 79 alongside YIMBY Action.
• Abundant Housing LAcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerA Los Angeles-based YIMBY organization led by Anthony Dedousis (formerly Director of Policy and Research). Abundant Housing LA is a key coalition partner in California, working on local and state housing policy reform.
• YIMBY Dems of San DiegominorGTM or Marketing PartnerA San Diego-based YIMBY organization affiliated with the YIMBY coalition. Part of the broader network of YIMBY organizations contributing to California's housing policy reform efforts.
• South Bay YIMBYcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerA YIMBY Action chapter in California's South Bay region. South Bay YIMBY played a critical role in the SB 79 campaign, including meeting with Senator Wahab (Chair of the Senate Housing Committee) and mobilizing advocates for committee hearings.
• Fair Housing ElementscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerAn initiative focused on the California Housing Element process, where cities must submit housing plans every eight years. YIMBY Action partners with Fair Housing Elements to recruit volunteers to monitor and advocate for cities to submit compliant, ambitious housing plans that meet state requirements.
• San Mateo Forward / Peninsula For EveryoneminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSan Mateo Forward (a YIMBY Action chapter) and Peninsula For Everyone collaborated on the San Mateo Measure T campaign, which successfully lifted height limits in the city's downtown and transit corridor to enable 20,000 new homes.
• Housing Leadership Council of San MateominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerA San Mateo County housing policy organization. Leora Tanjuatco Ross, YIMBY Action's California Director, previously worked at the Housing Leadership Council organizing support for affordable housing. The organization is part of the broader Bay Area housing advocacy ecosystem.
• East Bay YIMBYcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerA YIMBY Action chapter in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. East Bay YIMBY organizes local housing campaigns and hosts events including Oakland Town Halls with elected officials.
• Benevity and Brightfunds (Employer Matching Platforms)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerEmployer giving platforms through which donations to Yes In My Back Yard (the affiliated 501(c)(3)) are matched by employees' employers, expanding the donor base and contribution value for YIMBY's supporters.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Sightline Institute: Pacific Northwest think tank focused on housing, land use, and sustainability policy. Conducts research and advocacy for abundant housing, a comparable policy-advocacy model in a regional market.
• Abundant Housing LA: Los Angeles-based YIMBY organization led by former YIMBY Action Policy and Research staff. Part of the same California coalition on SB 79 and other local/state housing reform campaigns.
• YIMBY Law: Sister legal-enforcement organization that splits off from SF BARF alongside YIMBY Action in 2017. Operates in the same pro-housing policy space across the same 67 chapters in 25 states, providing legal action against non-compliant cities rather than grassroots organizing.
• Greater Greater Washington: DC-region urbanism and pro-housing advocacy nonprofit covering land use, transit, and housing policy. Comparable member-supported advocacy model with local chapter-style organizing.
• California YIMBY: Major California-focused YIMBY advocacy organization that co-sponsored and supported SB 79 alongside YIMBY Action. Operates in the same pro-housing policy space with a state-level focus on California legislation and endorsements.
• Abundant Housing Illinois: Illinois-focused pro-housing advocacy organization; a YIMBY Action Chapter Systems Manager previously served as a chapter lead there. Operates the same pro-housing advocacy model at the state level.
• Housing Action Coalition: San Francisco-based pro-housing advocacy coalition that collaborates with YIMBY Action on legislative campaigns and grassroots mobilization in the Bay Area.

Emerging players

• Strong Towns: National nonprofit advocating for bottom-up urbanist and incremental housing/development reform. Comparable advocacy and community-engagement model, though with a broader urbanism frame beyond purely pro-housing policy.

Broad incumbents

• National Low Income Housing Coalition: Large national advocacy organization for affordable housing and against housing poverty. Overlaps in pro-housing policy goals but operates at significantly larger scale with a low-income tenant focus.
• National Association of Home Builders: National trade association representing the home building industry. Pushes for pro-housing policies from the supply side, overlapping with YIMBY Action's mission on supply expansion, but on the opposite side of NIMBY politics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/yimbyaction
• Facebookfacebook.com/yimbyaction
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/yimby-action
• Instagraminstagram.com/yimbyaction

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about YIMBY Action