Housing

Co-Ops Provide a Path to Preserve Affordable Housing

Unlike in New York, housing cooperatives are a rare find in DC. Tucked into neighborhoods like Logan Circle and Columbia Heights, they are "relatively unknown". But they provide a "great source of stable, affordable housing," writes Elizabeth Falcon.

September 20, 2013 - Greater Greater Washington

State Ruling Puts Sacramento's K Street Revitalization Project on Hold

State officials ruled that the City of Sacramento did not meet deadlines for financing the K Street revitalization project, including improperly allocating redevelopment funds. The city disagreed and will sue to overturn the decision.

September 18, 2013 - Sacramento Bee

Prediction for UK Home Price Increases Stokes Fears of a Bubble

By the end of 2013, the British real estate website Rightmove expects house prices to have risen six percent as Chancellor George Osbourne defends a government scheme many blame for fueling the rise.

September 18, 2013 - The Guardian

Home Sold Sign

The Inverse Relationship Between Homeownership and Economic Development

In the United States, homeownership has long been touted as a sign of personal success and national prosperity. But a comparison of homeownership levels to economic health across 41 countries shows an inverse correlation.

September 17, 2013 - The Atlantic Cities

The Corner Store: Mark of a "Dynamic Neighbourhood"

In Vancouver, the presence of corner stores indicates diverse, dynamic, and affordable neighborhoods. But is the disappearance of such stores from neighborhoods across the city a sign that residential areas are becoming unbalanced?

September 17, 2013 - The Globe and Mail

Amsterdam's 'Scum Village' Gets First Residents

Amsterdam has sent its first family to go live in a ghetto on the east side of the city, now commonly known as "scum village."

September 15, 2013 - Future Cities

Boston Seeks to Build 30,000 Housing Units by Decade's End

With the goals of accommodating growth, expanding the city's middle class and supply of affordable housing, and moving college students out of private housing, outgoing Mayor Thomas Menino has unveiled a $16.5 billion housing strategy for Boston.

September 11, 2013 - WBUR

Housing Lottery Attests to D.C. Area's Affordability Crisis

Applicants began lining up before dawn for a chance to land one of 122 affordable apartments being built in Arlington, VA. More than 3,600 people have applied in total, surprising the developers and pointing to the area's increasing unaffordability.

September 10, 2013 - The Washington Post

What is the Key to Improving New York City's Livability?

The candidates competing to emerge from today's mayoral primary confront a host of challenges that threaten the quality of life in the Big Apple. Five experts identify the issues they believe are key to improving the city's livability.

September 10, 2013 - The New York Times

Land Rush Is On as Builders Try to Catch Up to Housing Demand

As the housing market roars back to life, the price of "dirt", or developable land, is surging in America's most desirable areas - including the outer suburbs. A shortage of lots is said to be hampering the housing recovery.

September 9, 2013 - The New York Times

From Suburbs to "Urban Burbs"

Eric Jaffe of The Atlantic Cities talks with writer Leigh Gallagher about her new book, The End of the Suburbs: Where the American Dream Is Moving, and her opinions on the rapidly evolving American housing market.

September 4, 2013 - The Atlantic Cities

This image displays six different types of parking typologies

How Parking Rules Raise Rents

Alan Durning details the negative effects that parking requirements have on housing affordability.

September 4, 2013 - Sightline Institute

Cargo Cult Urbanism?

In many exurban locations, planners and developers are often enticed by the idea of building urban environments, but without the necessary markets to support them, argues a real estate consultant.

September 3, 2013 - Baltimore Business Journal

An image of Transit Oriented Development in Saltillo Lofts, Austin, Texas

Retaining Affordable Housing Near Transit Just Got Easier

Changes to the criteria for evaluating applications for the federal New Starts program could have a significant impact on efforts to preserve and expand affordable housing in close proximity to transit.

August 31, 2013 - Rooflines

Can Transit Oriented Development be Effective in India?

TOD as a planning tool is new to Indian cities, where the idea is being championed as a solution to congestion, environment quality and housing equity. Can this concept, developed for the North American city, be successful in Indian cities?

August 30, 2013 - The City Fix

Homelessness

US Homelessness is Way Down; So Why Isn't Anyone Talking About It?

Despite a deep recession driven by a housing bust, the National Alliance to End Homelessness estimates that homelessness dropped by 17 percent from 2005 to 2012. This is astonishing news, right? So why aren't politicians trumpeting this decline?

August 30, 2013 - The Atlantic

Hot Housing Market Shows Signs of Cooling

Commenting on a recent drop in new-home sales, mortgage applications, and slowing home price increases, Goldman Sachs analysts are reporting that America's housing market has hit “a pothole.”

August 30, 2013 - Marketwatch

Invasion of the Renters Disturbs Homeowners

An improving housing market driven by investors has continued to drive down America's homeownership rate. In many neighborhoods, this means that renters now occupy a substantial amount of homes, distressing owner-occupiers.

August 30, 2013 - The New York Times

'High-End' Berkeley Micro-Apartment Proposal Receives Chilly Reception

A five-story, 60 ft. building proposal in Berkeley, Calif. that would house 70 'high end' micro-apartments ranging from 307 to 344 sq. ft. was presented to the city's Zoning Adjustment Board, but commissioners and neighbors were not impressed.

August 29, 2013 - Berkeleyside

4 abandoned homes in St. Louis's Greater Ville neighborhood

Why Did a 'Mysterious' Company Buy Hundreds of Properties in St. Louis?

Over the course of a year beginning in June 2008, a 'mysterious holding company' named Urban Assets bought 240 parcels across a five-mile swath of the north side of St. Louis. Since then, it's just let them decay.

August 28, 2013 - St. Louis Post-Dispatch

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