The headline from the latest report from the Joint Center for Housing Studies on the state of the nation's housing market focuses on a shrinking, broken rental market.
Donna Kimura shares news of "The State of the Nation’s Housing" report released earlier this week by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. The takeaway from the report: "The lower end of the rental housing market continues to lose ground," writes Kimura.
Modestly priced rental units available for under $800 declined by 261,000 between 2005 and 2015, with most of the loss occurring at the lowest rent levels. At the other end, the number of units renting for $2,000 or more surged by 1.5 million.
The shift in the rental stock toward the high end of the market is also clear from the 32% rise in real median asking rents since 2000, says the report.
The result of that shrinking supply of affordably priced rental units: more than 11 million renter households are using more than half of their incomes for housing.
The article delves into more of the report's findings and discusses some of the looming policy threats that could further impact the rental housing market.
Read the full story: U.S. Losing Low-Rent Units
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Move over, LA: St. Louis gears up for Olympics, invests millions in downtown redevelopment
The Missouri city will host the 2028 Olympic soccer group stage and knockout matches.
Mass. votes against statewide minimum lot size for single-family homes
Over 2 million residents voted on Question 7; it was decided by just over 30,000 votes.
Maryland’s $15 billion bridge project gains key approval
The Maryland Transit Authority said the project will create over 60,000 jobs and add $23 billion to the local economy.
‘No clear next steps’ for Chicago's permanent festival grounds
Eleventh Ward Ald. Nicole Lee has suggested Soldier Field as a possible location for the permanent event space.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello