Pfeiler’s career as a housing advocate includes tenures as an Escondido City Councilwoman, Mayor and CEO of San Diego Habitat for Humanity
SAN DIEGO, Calif. (July 21, 2025) – The Building Industry Association of San Diego County (BIA) has announced that Lori Holt Pfeiler, who has served as the organization’s president and CEO since 2021, will retire at the end of this year. Pfeiler’s long and storied career as a housing advocate includes tenures as an Escondido City Councilwoman (6 years) and Mayor (12 years), as well as the President and CEO of San Diego Habitat for Humanity (9 years).
“During my time as a public servant for the City of Escondido, I learned that you can make all the decisions you want, but healthy communities require a healthy housing market and families thrive when they have a home they can call their own,” said Pfeiler. “This is why helping to increase the supply of attainable housing for families of all income levels became my enduring mission.”
Pfeiler took the reins of BIA of San Diego post-pandemic when the importance of providing housing had become the region’s key issue. For the past four years she has worked tirelessly with local leaders to improve the political and legislative environment to increase the number of homes available in the region.
“Lori has done an outstanding job of educating local leaders on the issues affecting housing,” said Brendan Hayes, Senior Vice President of Fairfield Residential and board chair of the BIA. “Beyond that, she has worked hard to build coalitions with a diverse group of San Diego organizations in the pursuit of making it possible to deliver that housing. The BIA, its board of directors, and its members thank Lori for the four years she guided the organization and for leaving the industry in a stronger position than when she arrived.”
The BIA’s leadership team is committed to building on Pfeiler’s myriad accomplishments and aim to select her replacement in the next several months in order to allow for a smooth transition and to maintain a continuity in the association’s mission.
“I’m so honored to have worked alongside the amazing team at the BIA for the past four years and will always be passionate about the housing industry and providing homes for families,” said Pfeiler. “It’s time for me to transition to the next stage of my life, which includes another passion of mine: bicycling. I look forward to riding my bicycle across the country, meeting fellow Americans and getting an intimate look at their communities from coast to coast.”
