An upsurge of corporate purchases of single-family homes has sparked legislation in at least half a dozen states this year. Legislators hope to preserve homeownership as a path to building wealth for middle-class families and limit the number of properties owned by large corporations.
A legal loophole in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program is allowing developers to remove rent restrictions from affordable housing, leading to rising rents and worsening the housing crisis.
Reported plans to cut staff in the Department of Housing and Urban Development, along with proposed budget cuts and the Trump administration’s funding freeze, have worried administrators of state and local housing programs.
Neodesha, Kan., is offering a variety of incentives, including student loan repayment, tax breaks and housing development plans to encourage people to move to the small town and combat rural population decline.
Tools are available to not only count people experiencing homelessness more accurately but also to provide them with individualized services. More municipalities should use them.
Homelessness in Miami-Dade County has fallen to an 11-year low thanks to new shelters, a state law banning public sleeping, and other measures.
New Mexico stands out as an exception, leading to skyrocketing rents and home prices.
A combined federal and state effort to redesign the boondoggle-prone economic development program could also provide the blueprint for rebuilding devastated communities.
Cities across the country are committed to making it easier to build housing and are taking a variety of promising approaches, note the leaders of the U.S. Conference of Mayors. But they must be bolstered by federal investment and flexibility.
The legislation would block foreclosures and allow homeowners who’ve suffered financially due to the L.A. fires to freeze payments without penalty. Several major lenders have already reached agreement with Gov. Gavin Newsom to provide voluntary relief.
The programs depend on temporary sources of funding from Washington and the state that may be drying up. Finding sustainable funds has been a challenge.
Lawmakers will devote considerable time this year to perennial concerns such as crime and education.
The Yes In My Backyard movement is barely a decade old. But it has set the terms of the debate over state and local housing policy.
The city’s planning office won’t approve conversion of single-family properties into multiple units in six neighborhoods. The desire to protect Latino neighborhoods from gentrification runs counter to the city’s housing goals.
Governors, mayors and finance officers are treading water, awaiting the outcome and impact of a new Washington regime’s vows to slash federal spending and taxes. Meanwhile, state and municipal budgeters and debt managers will need to make intelligent guesses and pay more attention to their rainy-day funds.
State officials face challenges from shrinking revenue and major changes from Washington in shared programs such as education and Medicaid.
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