SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS)  -- One of the newest members of the state Assembly is working on a plan to make it easier for families trying to buy their first home to achieve that goal.

Mark DeSaulnier of Concord is introducing a measure that would allow Contra Costa County to asses a $1 per page fee on real estate transactions, with the money going towards new rental housing and new housing construction.

"The average would be $15 we think, so when you sell a house you'd be paying $15 extra. It's a good investment from my view, because you're providing for a more robust economy if you're providing for more housing," DeSaulnier said.

AB239 could eventually have a broader impact if more California counties adopt similar models to head off what DeSaulnier calls a crisis.

"There's definitely a crisis. We recognize it in California. It has just gotten worse and worse and this is just as I say, one more attempt to help at least our county to address it."

Without the legislation more and more families will be forced to live farther away from where they work, adding to congestion on freeways and air pollution, according to DeSaulnier. However, similar legislation has been introduced in the past, but realtors opposed it.

The current median price of an existing single-family home in the Bay Area is about $645,000. A condo or townhouse is around $496,000.