New Updates on The Edge

PD&R’s online magazine, The Edge, provides you with a snapshot view of our newly released research, periodicals, publications, news, and commentaries on housing and urban development issues. Stay informed on current topics and check back frequently, as our content is routinely updated.

Message from PD&R Leadership: Urban. Suburban. Rural. How Do Households Describe Where They Live?

In the leadership message, director of PD&R’s Housing and Demographic Analysis Division Shawn Bucholtz discusses new data that indicate that the majority of Americans live in suburban areas. In 2017, HUD and the U.S. Census Bureau conducted the biennial American Housing Survey and included a question asking respondents to describe their neighborhood as urban, suburban, or rural. More than half of those who answered selected the suburban descriptor, confirming the hypothesis of researchers.

Featured: HUD User Case Studies

HUD User is PD&R's central information source for housing and community development researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and the public. One of the resources available through this clearinghouse is an ongoing series of case studies, now with an archive of approximately 140 cases. Most case studies profile an affordable housing development that has been recognized with an award, and feature strategies to expand affordable housing opportunities, apply sustainable features and practices, or increase access to public transportation.

In Practice: Affordable Housing in Silicon Valley Puts Focus on Sustainability

Developed by MidPen Housing and designed by David Baker Architects, Edwina Benner Plaza is a 66-unit affordable housing development in Sunnyvale, California, that has achieved net-zero operating emissions. The $44 million project generates approximately half of its electricity needs via rooftop solar panels and purchases the rest from Silicon Valley Clean Energy. Eligible tenants must earn no more than 60 percent of the area median income annually, and 23 units are reserved for households that formerly experienced homelessness or are at risk of homelessness.

Spotlight on PD&R Data: Steady Employment Growth in the Greensboro HMA

The latest in a series focusing on HUD's Comprehensive Housing Market Analyses (CHMAs) examines the Greensboro-High Point Housing Market Area (Greensboro HMA). Located in central North Carolina and encompassing three counties, the Greensboro HMA has experienced job growth every year since 2011 and nonfarm payrolls are expected to increase by 0.4 percent annually over the next three years. Both the rental and sales housing markets are balanced. This analysis was completed before the COVID-19 outbreak.

Subscribe to receive The Edge here.