Housing

North Texas HOA Effectively Bans Section 8 Recipients
Housing and civil rights advocates warn that the community’s rule instituting fines on landlords who rent to housing voucher recipients will disproportionately affect Black families.

Whose History Is Being Preserved, Exactly?
As the housing crisis continues, advocates are increasingly wary of historic preservation efforts that serve to perpetuate historic inequities and keep housing costs high.

Oregon Makes Historic Parking Reforms. What’s Next?
The state made sweeping reforms that eliminate parking requirements in some jurisdictions, which supporters hope will lead to faster, less expensive construction and the revitalization of vacant properties and underused lots.

No End in Sight to U.S. Housing Shortage
Despite recent cooling in the overheated U.S. housing market, high costs and labor and supply shortages are causing continuing hardship for potential homebuyers and renters.

Could L.A. Be a 15-Minute City?
Advocates argue that even famously car-centric Los Angeles can become a place where residents can easily access their daily needs without getting behind the wheel.

Chicago Passes Equitable TOD Ordinance
The new legislation will promote more development near transit in the city’s underserved neighborhoods and improve safety for pedestrians and other road users.

Friday Funny: Are You NIMBY Material?
A humorous “application form” skewers the so-called NIMBY movement.

South Carolina Town Blames Free Buses for Rise in Unhoused Population
City officials in North Myrtle Beach argue that a free transit program has led to a rise in the town’s homelessness rate.

California Rents Could Spike by as Much as 10 Percent
Thanks to inflation, landlords in parts of the state not limited by local rent stabilization ordinances can raise rent by up to 10 percent starting in August.

Austin Metro Home Sales Slow Dramatically
After a whirlwind of rising costs and sharply spiking demand for housing in smaller cities, the housing market is cooling down to pre-pandemic levels.

La Placita Cinco: A Strip Mall Redevelopment for Housing Affordability and Neighborhood Revitalization
U.S. cities lack land for new development but have many derelict or defunct parcels in need of revitalization. There are an estimated 70,000 strip mall centers in the country, all with tremendous potential for affordable and workforce housing.

Spokane Prepares To Disband the State’s Largest Community of Unhoused People
With $24 million in state funding directed to Spokane’s efforts to reduce homelessness, city officials plan to relocate the over 600 residents of Camp Hope. But will services follow?

San Diego Not Meeting State Housing Goals
Based on the number of permits issued for new construction in the last year, the city must triple its production to meet the targets set by the state in the latest round of the Regional Housing Needs Assessment.

Report: Nation Short 3.8 Million Housing Units
Housing underproduction in the United States is growing more severe and more widespread.

How To Build More Affordable Housing in Idaho
Idaho cities can remove barriers to development, adjust zoning codes, and encourage the construction of accessory dwelling units and single-occupancy apartments to sustainably accommodate the state’s growing population.

Missouri Criminalizes Sleeping Outside
The state legislature passed a bill that bans sleeping on state land and threatens to pull state funding from cities with high rates of homelessness.

New York City Issues Nearly All Its Housing Vouchers
After a slow start to the program, the city has distributed 91 percent of the housing vouchers issued through the American Rescue Act. Now housing agencies must help recipients actually find housing.

Capsule Housing: Affordable Solution or Dystopia?
Like Japan’s capsule hotels, the ‘podsharing’ housing model offers minimal, shared living space—but can it work as a long-term housing solution?

To Meet Housing Goals, California Cities Turn to Mall Redevelopment
As brick-and-mortar stores decline due to the rise of e-commerce, cities look to mall sites as ideal locations for new housing.

Boise Backing Off Proposed Citywide Zoning Changes
Boise was considering allowing up to four units by-right on any residential parcel in the city, but has since rolled back the scale of the proposed zoning changes.
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