The YIMBY Act Passes House by Voice Vote

“The YIMBY Act, which was championed by Representatives Denny Heck (D-Wash.) and Trey Hollingsworth (R-Ind.), would use Community Development Block Grant Consolidated Plans to support modernizing outdated codes that hinder housing and undermine sound local plans. The senate version of the legislation (S. 1919) was introduced last year by Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii).”

https://dennyheck.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/yes-in-my-backyard-act-passes-house-by-voice-vote

https://www.planning.org/home/action/nimby/

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/

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

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/

Why Is The Thermal Envelope So Important?

“When people are thinking about building a new house they generally work with an architect with a clear opinion on the style, size and rooms that will be a priority. But the most important issue every homeowner and architect should consider when building a new house is the thermal envelope and how the house will work as a system to limit the use of energy and water while also minimizing wasteful and toxic materials. This is an environmentally sound objective as well as a financial and comfort goal.”

https://www.forbes.com/sites/sherikoones/2020/03/18/why-is-the-thermal-envelope-so-important/amp/

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

Photo Credit: Mises Institute