Minorities were hardest hit by the foreclosure crisis of the Great Recession. Latinos are now helping keep the housing market afloat.

"Hispanics are experiencing the largest homeownership gains of any ethnic group in the U.S., a turnaround for the population hardest hit by the housing bust that could help buoy the market for years," report Laura Kusisto and Ben Eisen.
"While Hispanics comprise only 18% of the U.S. population, the group accounted for nearly 63% of new U.S. homeowner gains over the past decade," according to the article, which is sharing data from the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals.
The narrative built from these findings speak to a "growing population of young Latinos increasingly eager to buy homes." The optimism and growing buying power of Latinos is working to offset the effects of a slowing homebuying market. According to Kusisto and Eisen, "sales of existing homes have fallen on an annual basis for the past year."
The effect of Latinos entering in the market is fairly widespread around the country. According to the article, "Hispanic home buying stretched from towns in southern California to rural Texas and suburban Minneapolis." Of all the states in the nation, the largest share of Latinos homeowners with mortgages live in New Mexico.
FULL STORY: Wave of Hispanic Buyers Boosts U.S. Housing Market [paywall]

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

Adaptive Reuse Will Create Housing in a Suburban Texas Strip Mall
A developer is reimagining a strip mall property as a mixed-use complex with housing and retail.

Study: Anti-Homelessness Laws Don’t Work
Research shows that punitive measures that criminalized unhoused people don’t help reduce homelessness.

In U.S., Urban Gondolas Face Uphill Battle
Cities in Latin America and Europe have embraced aerial transitways — AKA gondolas — as sustainable, convenient urban transport, especially in tricky geographies. American cities have yet to catch up.
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.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont