Housing

Vacant Properties Occupied by Homeless Families Turned Over to Community Land Trust
A major victory in the fight for housing justice has been achieved in Philadelphia.

Overdue Rent Could Equal $34 Billion by January 2021
As Americans deal with job losses and ongoing unemployment, rent bills are piling up and a wave of evictions looms on the horizon.

Rents Dropping Across the U.S., but Especially in Big, Wealthy Cities
People are moving less and rents are dropping, according to a new report from Apartment List.

HUD Rule Change Allows Landlords to Use Screening Services Despite Discrimination Concerns
A revised U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development rule makes it more difficult to submit claims of housing discrimination when a landlord's decisions is influenced by a third-party tenant screening service.

Lawyers Taking the Single-Family Zoning Fight to a Connecticut Town
Open Communities Alliance, along with law students and professors at a fair housing development clinic at Yale Law School, have proposed a development meant to trigger the exclusionary zoning code in the town of Woodbridge, Connecticut.

Rent Control Debated in the Nation's Capital
District council members and local tenant advocates are engaged in a bit of tug of war about how far the District should go to limit the amount landlords can raise rents.

Lessons from the Last Housing Crisis: How to Get Control of Properties
How to keep affordable apartments and single-family homes out of the hands of institutional investors if the coronavirus pandemic leads to a giant wave of evictions and foreclosures.

As Vacancy Rates Climb in New York's Rental Market, Landlords Blame New Rent Control Law
Vacancy rates in New York City have climbed to unexpected heights in 2020, and landlords aren't pinning all the blame on a pandemic-induced urban exodus.

Wall Street Wagering on a Permanent Suburban Renter Class
Expectations that the economic downturn of the COVID-19 pandemic will create a wave of homeowners leaving the market, whether by choice or necessity, are driving big acquisitions by private equity firms and Wall Street investors.

Affordable Housing Project Fails From Community Opposition in Honolulu
The final demise of a closely watched, controversial affordable housing project was reported this week in Honolulu.

Rezoning a Wealthy Neighborhood in the Name of Equity
An opinion piece makes the case that a rezoning proposal for the Brooklyn neighborhood of Gowanus has a higher potential for new affordable housing and lower risk of displacement compared to other rezoning plans in the city.

$1 Billion in New Affordable Housing Funding Announced for Canada
The federal government of Canada is promising to help cities pay for affordable housing.

The Causes of California's Development Malaise
A spate of recent articles has taken a critical look at the regulatory obstacles to a progrssive planning vision in the state of California.

New Gig Economy Player: Eviction Crews For Hire
A new company called Civvl is hiring contract workers to help evict people during the economic struggles of the pandemic.

Inclusionary Zoning Sought by Toronto's Chief Planner
Gregg Lintern, chief planner and executive director of the City Planning Division for Toronto, went before a city committee this week to press for a new inclusionary zoning scheme to ensure the construction of affordable housing.

Permanent Supportive Housing Works for the Chronically Homeless, Study Says
A groundbreaking study provides some of the strongest evidence yet of the powerful results of permanent supportive housing for the chronically homeless.

NoHo and SoHo Rezoning Controversies, Amplified
One of the big questions of planning is up for debate with a proposed rezoning in the SoHo and NoHo neighborhoods of New York City: Can upzoning be an effective tool for affordability?

The High Cost of Rampant Evictions: $315 Million a Year in Harris County, Texas
Evictions incur immense costs for the public and nonprofit sector, according to new analysis from the Kinder Institute for Urban Research.

An Online Portal for Designing Accessory Dwelling Units
The ADUniverse website offers pre-approved designs for homeowners who want to add Accessory Dwelling Units on properties in Seattle.

The Hypocrisies and Troubles of Local Control
President Trump has opinions about the sanctity of local control that don't agree with his other opinions about local control. This is a cautionary tale.
Pagination
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
EMC Planning Group, Inc.
Planetizen
Planetizen
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service