Housing
Looking To Architects As Bellwhethers of Building Industry Trends
This column from The Washington Post looks at the housing and development trends presented by the American Institute of Architects' Home Design Trends survey.
Thoughts on America's Affordable Housing Shortage
This report from NPR looks at the shortage of affordable housing in America.
House of Cards
A primer on how the economics of housing have been the foundation of not just urban planning but the whole American economy since the 1930s, and why the current housing crisis could have such a far-reaching impact.
The Shock Doctrine Comes to New Orleans
Naomi Klein believes that HUD's demolition of public housing in New Orleans isn't just about responding to flood damage: it's a classic example of what she calls "The Shock Doctrine" -- using disasters to restructure and privatize whole economies.
Will Retiring Baby Boomers Revive The Cohousing Movement?
Cohousing could be the answer for seniors looking for a strong sense of community and support from neighbors as they age.
Utah's Affordable Housing Woes
Strong job growth and a lack of multi-family housing are pushing rents up and squeezing low-income households.
Suburban Tent City?
As foreclosure rates rise across the country, former homeowners are seeking shelter in suburban "tent cities" while municipalities struggle to cope with extra costs and declining tax revenues.
San Mateo: First California County To Subdivide Housing Need Allocations
"Regional Housing Needs Allocations" are generally dreaded by California cities who resist state mandates to provide affordable housing. Rather than being assigned the requirement by the regional COG, San Mateo's 20 cities chose to do it themselves.
Affordable Housing Plans More Achievable In D.C.
This post from The Next American City's blog looks at plans for building affordable housing in Washington D.C. and how the city is in a much better position to provide for its low income residents than many other major cities.
NOLA Demolitions: One of 'Greatest Crimes in U.S. Urban Planning'
HUD's arguments for the demolition of thousands of public housing units in New Orleans echoes the worst of the "tabula rasa" approach to urban renewal of the 1960s, writes Nicolai Ouroussoff.
Fair Housing, But For Whom?
The Fair Housing Act was passed by Congress in 1968, but some minorities still struggle to obtain mortgages and home loans. This article from The Next American City asks why.
Housing The Most Vulnerable
Homeless advocates are working in Los Angeles to identify the city's most vulnerable homeless people on Skid Row. With this list the county intends to take a piecemeal approach to housing the city's homeless.
Minneapolis Neighborhood Revitalized For Renters, Owners and Retailers
The non-profit neighborhood housing group Hope Community has renovated ten houses, built 126 affordable rental units, and has two mixed income projects under way in one depressed and crime-ridden Minneapolis block.
What's Next For New Orleans Demolition Sites?
In this commentary from Bloomberg, James S. Russell looks as the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's threat to withdraw hundreds of millions of dollars worth of housing vouchers from New Orleans and the future of the city.
The Pleistocene Dream?
Owning a home may appeal to primitive happiness-seeking instincts, but the resulting suburban isolation and solitary commutes many people face may be making us profoundly unhappy, writes Charles Montgomery.
Buying Foreclosed Homes A Struggle Unless Occupants Are Booted
Buyers looking to snatch up renter-occupied foreclosed homes and apartment buildings are meeting opposition from mortgage companies who want all tenants out before a sale. This leaves many buyers unsatisfied and many renters feeling insecure.
New York: The New American Teardown Capital
Surpassing metropolitan Chicago, metro New York now hosts the highest amount of teardowns in the country.
Anaheim Plans To Remake Its Sports District Into Highrise Urban Village
Anaheim (Orange County, CA) has big plans: 20,000 urban infill homes planned for their sports district. While the zoning change passed the council on a 4-1 vote, developers will wait for the housing market to recover.
Land of the Living, Dead
Vice Magazine presents this photo essay on a cemetery in Manila that is heavily populated with both the living and the dead. More than 10,000 families make this graveyard their home.
Inclusionary Housing Bill Gets Approval In Philadelphia
The Philadelphia city council has approved an inclusionary housing bill requiring developers to include a certain percentage of affordable housing in all projects of 20 units or more.
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