Facebook to build 1,500 homes near headquarters to ease housing woes in Silicon Valley

The severe housing shortage in California's Silicon Valley has prompted Facebook Inc to consider building 1,500 units near its headquarters for the first time.

The growth of Facebook, Alphabet Inc's Google and other tech companies had strained neighbourhoods in the San Francisco Bay area, which were not prepared for the influx of tens of thousands of workers during the past decade, which had pushed up Home prices and commuting times had increased, as a result.

"The problem with Silicon Valley is you don't have enough supply to keep up with the demand," Reuters reported quoting Sam Khater, deputy chief economist at real estate research firm CoreLogic.

Under its construction plan, Facebook sought to invest in Menlo Park, the city some 45 miles (72 km) south of San Francisco where it moved in 2011.

It said it intended to build a "village" that will also have 1.75 million square feet of office space and 125,000 square feet of retail space.

"Part of our vision is to create a neighborhood center that provides long-needed community services," John Tenanes, Facebook's vice president for global facilities, said in a statement.

According to the company, the 1,500 housing units would be open to all, not just employees, with 15 per cent of them on offer below market rates, the company said.

The social media giant said yesterday that it would build an addition to its headquarters, building a multi-use complex with stores, a pharmacy and 1,500 housing units. The expansion, called "Willow Campus," will include 125,000 square feet of retail and be entirely open to the public, the company said in a blog post.

According to Facebook's projections, the first part of the project, including the retail, office, housing and grocery space, would be complete by 2021.

The social network and other Silicon Valley titans had faced criticism in recent years for drawing thousands of workers to the Bay Area without increasing housing supply.