Affordable Housing

Vancouver

Vancouver's Attempt to Preserve Affordable Housing Causes Waves

On August 2nd, a new 15 percent tax on real estate deals with foreign buyers went into effect. The goal was to cool the hyperactive housing market, but the implementation has caught many by surprise.

August 4, 2016 - CBC News

Senior Pedestrians

A Case for Integrating Housing and Healthcare Services

Connecting affordable housing and healthcare programs can improve both—especially for seniors and disabled people.

July 28, 2016 - CityLab

Construction

A 'Housing New York' Report Card

The de Blasio Administration set lofty goals for the creation and preservation of housing in New York. So how's that going?

July 27, 2016 - Politico

Back Bay Boston

Market Not Cooperating With Boston's Housing Goals

Just because the public sector has set a goal to deliver thousands of new workforce housing units, doesn’t mean the market, or the private sector for that matter, will cooperate.

July 25, 2016 - The Boston Globe

Construction

A Portrait of the Nation's Inclusionary Zoning Policies

The number of inclusionary zoning programs is growing quickly around the country. A recent study by the National Housing Conference takes stock of this prominent affordable housing tool.

July 21, 2016 - American Planning Association

Parking Sign

Portland Seeks Affordability By Subtracting Parking

Portland's City Council has sided with housing advocates against neighborhood groups who wanted new developments to include parking spaces.

July 18, 2016 - Willamette Week

Philadelphia Ben Franklin Bridge

$9.3M Awarded to Affordable Housing Development in Philly

The Pennsylvania Governors Office announced that eight developers were awarded a total $9.3M in tax credits from the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA) to build 495 affordable housing units in the city of Philadelphia.

July 15, 2016 - Curbed Philadelphia

Apartments for rent signage

Op-Ed: We Shouldn't Rush to Regulate Airbnb

Is Airbnb a prime target for regulation, or is it just another way to expand the marketplace for bedrooms? Dan Bertolet urges caution. After all, couldn't less Airbnb just mean more hotels?

July 11, 2016 - Sightline Institute

Hamburg Sets Inclusionary Zoning Pace in Western New York

With less than 60,000 residents, Hamburg, New York might fly under the housing policy radar, but the small town is the first in Western New York to approve inclusionary zoning. Buffalo could be next.

July 10, 2016 - The Buffalo News

Tiny House

Tiny Houses Aren't the Solution

Vox publishes an article debunking tiny houses as the housing silver bullet some hope they will become.

July 9, 2016 - Vox

San Francisco Sprawl

The Real Reasons Affordable Housing Isn't Being Built in California

The policy tools used to address our nation's housing shortfall often seem to worsen the problem. But this is because they ignore the underlying infrastructure and financing to support growth.

July 7, 2016 - Shelterforce/Rooflines

The Unintended Consequences Lurking in Gov. Brown's Affordable Housing Proposal

California Governor Brown's proposal to streamline affordable housing may cause more problems than it solves, both for affordable housing and community planning, argues Murtaza Baxamusa who teaches planning at USC and develops affordable housing.

July 6, 2016 - UrbDeZine

Barcelona

Barcelona Facing New Housing Problems, and Airbnb

Barcelona is facing increasing pressure on its housing market, primarily in rental prices. The Mediterranean city, which last year became the third most popular European destination after Paris and London, is facing a new housing crisis.

July 6, 2016 - Cities of the Future

San Antonio City Hall

San Antonio Wants a Housing Bond, but its Charter Won't Make it Easy

San Antonio provides a case study of the difficult politics of funding affordable housing measures.

July 5, 2016 - San Antonio Express News

Housing Initiatives to Appear on Northern and Southern California Ballots in November

Last week the Los Angeles City Council and Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors approved housing initiatives. "Build Better LA" requires large developments to have affordable units. Silicon Valley voters will vote on a $950 million housing bond.

June 26, 2016 - Planetizen

Shotgun Homes, New Orleans

New Orleans Mayor Announces Five-Year Affordable Housing Plan

Faced with increasing numbers of residents more than 50 percent of their income on housing costs, the mayor of New Orleans has announced his intentions to build or preserve 7,500 affordable units by 2021.

June 23, 2016 - Gambit

Omaha

Only Three Cities Pass the 'Trilemma' Test

Good jobs, affordable housing, and quality of life rarely come in a total package. In fact, according to new analysis from the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis, only three cities in the United States combine all three.

June 13, 2016 - Gizmodo

Did Amazon Really Just Create a Pop-up Homeless Shelter?

As cities around the U.S. scramble to figure out how to address the housing affordability crisis, one of them has now leaned on the benevolence of what some consider the least benevolent of them all.

June 10, 2016 - Shelterforce/Rooflines

Philly Developer Must Comply With Zoning Deal Before Tenants Can Occupy Luxury Units

City officials in Philadelphia are scrambling to deal with the fallout after a developer suddenly backed out of a deal that allowed additional height in exchange for affordable housing units for a 250-unit development near the Delaware River.

June 10, 2016 - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Golden Gate

Bay Area Election Roundup: Wetlands, Housing, Ballot-Box Planning, Sales Tax

A regional measure to tax all property owners in the 9-county Bay Area to adapt to sea level rise passes; S.F. voters support raising the affordable housing bar; Richmond voters reject ballot-box planning; San José approves sales tax increase.

June 9, 2016 - Planetizen

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