David Zisser was appointed Deputy Director of Housing Policy Development at HCD in May 2026. In this role, Zisser leads HCD’s policy agenda and oversees HCD’s accountability and enforcement, planning grants and incentives, homelessness programs and accountability, fair housing and tribal affairs, and data and research initiatives.
Prior to his current appointment, starting in 2021, Zisser served as Assistant Deputy Director for Local Government Relations and Accountability. In that role, Zisser led the establishment and growth of the Housing Accountability Unit and oversaw Planning Grants and Incentives and housing element reviews.
Before joining HCD, Zisser was the Associate Director at Housing California, a Senior Staff Attorney at Public Advocates, Counsel at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and a Housing Fellow at the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development.
Zisser earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, College of the Law, San Francisco; a Master of City Planning degree from the University of California, Berkeley; and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from the University of California, Los Angeles.