In this episode we discuss the challenges firefighters face when looking for housing. We also discuss how rent control is not the solution to affordability.
Category Archives: 2-HousingThink Topics
Why Affordable Housing Is So Hard to Find in America’s Big Cities
“Vanessa Brown Calder found for the Cato Institute that increased land-use regulation is associated with rising real average home prices in 44 states and that rising zoning regulation is associated with rising real average home prices in 36 states. ‘In general,’ she finds, ‘the states that have increased the amount of rules and restrictions on land use the most have higher housing prices.’ As a result, the $200 billion in federal funds, which was spent on subsidizing, renting, and buying homes in 2015, went to states with more restrictive zoning and land-use rules. ‘Federal aid thus creates a disincentive for the states to solve their own housing affordability problems by reducing regulation,’ Brown Calder finds.”
https://fee.org/articles/why-affordable-housing-is-so-hard-to-find-in-america-s-big-cities/
HousingThink Podcast – Episode 7
In this episode we discuss the challenges facing teachers in finding housing near their place of work. We also discuss strategies for working with local municipalities to create new housing for this market segment.
How Developers are Helping Teachers Find Affordable Housing
“According to the National Education Association, teacher salaries from the 2018-19 school year are down 4.5 percent compared to salaries from the 2009-10 school year, when adjusting for inflating. Over that same time period, the Case-Shiller National Home Price Index has risen by 43.1 percent.
This means many teachers have been forced to leave their school communities—particularly in high-cost metro areas like San Francisco and New York City—or to leave the profession altogether. ”
https://www.curbed.com/2019/5/7/18535284/affordable-housing-teachers-landed-village
HousingThink Podcast – Episode 6
In this episode we look at how veterans factor into the workforce housing market and how workforce housing renters are often forced to live in lower quality housing.
Prohibiting Underground Parking Creates Obstacles for Affordable Housing
“DOEE has indicated that it intends to prohibit purely residential buildings from building underground parking garages unless they obtain a code modification. Mixed-use projects, however, would be allowed to use underground parking garages ‘by right’ and no longer need to obtain a variance. These proposed changes would place another obstacle to delivering affordable housing in the District.”
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/d-c-s-department-of-energy-environment-94186/
HousingThink Extra – Episode 5
Our nation’s workforce is the backbone of the US economy. In this HT Extra, we’ll introduce you to some of these workers.
We Need More Housing, Not More Rent Control
“Like rent control, these questions of housing prices boil down to the basics. When the supply of housing stock is artificially restricted thanks to legislation, we inevitably get more expensive housing. However, it is not sufficient to say ‘let the market handle it’ when trying to offer an alternative policy to rent control.
There’s plenty of government intervention that impedes market mechanisms from providing affordable housing. Instead, we must point to specific policies, such as zoning rules, that make it more difficult to build housing. These regulations are the main culprits behind these rising housing prices. To win this debate, free market proponents must offer the solution of land-use liberalization, which entails repealing these measures.”
https://mises.org/wire/we-need-more-housing-not-more-rent-control
HousingThink Podcast – Episode 5
Workforce Housing is designed for those who earn too much to qualify for affordable housing and too little to live in newer market-rate housing. Today’s show puts a face on this often-overlooked market segment.
Let’s Say ‘Yes In My Backyard’ To Fix Housing Woes
“Amid soaring housing costs, homelessness and environmental destruction, it’s time to do away with the exclusionary ‘not in my backyard’ (NIMBY) attitude and embrace a ‘yes in my backyard’ (YIMBY) approach that calls for dense, responsible development.”
https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesrealestatecouncil/2020/01/28/lets-say-yes-in-my-backyard-to-fix-housing-woes/amp/
