Federal Policy | August 21, 2024
Is Three Million New Homes Enough?
Six years ago, when Up for Growth arrived on Capitol Hill, most lawmakers we talked to were happy to defer to state and local authorities on issues related to housing supply. One of our earliest meetings was with a senior congressional staffer who was polite but visibly skeptical of the notion that the federal government should be involved in what he dubbed a "local zoning problem." "That's why we have mayors and city councils," he said.
land use | August 13, 2024
A High Stakes Bet on Housing Supply
An effort to free up public lands for housing development is already underway in Nevada where BLM is selling land at rates significantly below-market in areas in and around the Las Vegas valley for the sole purpose of building affordable housing.
Federal Policy | July 17, 2024
Grants Pass Ruling: The Effective Way to End Homelessness is to Provide Housing
On June 28, the United States Supreme Court handed down a 6-3 ruling to overturn the lower court’s decision in Johnson v. Grants Pass. This ruling permits localities to issue citations and fines or even arrest individuals for sleeping outdoors, even if the localities cannot provide alternative shelter.
Federal Policy | July 16, 2024
Are We Really Getting National Rent Control?
This week the Biden administration announced a suite of actions designed to reduce rent costs for Americans. Garnering most of the attention was a move driven more by electoral politics than by housing economics. President Biden’s call on Congress to rescind tax benefits for corporate landlords who increase rents by more than 5% landed poorly among housing providers who framed the announcement as “national rent control.” So why would the administration make such an announcement, especially given overwhelming evidence showing the negative effects of control on overall prices and housing supply? And why would the administration want to stifle supply when the nation is already faced with a staggering 3.8 million home shortage?
SOTU | March 8, 2024
SOTU 2024: Housing Gets Its Day
Yesterday, just ahead of the State of the Union Address, the White House issued its official plan to lower housing costs for working families. Acknowledging both the difficult interest rate environment and a growing housing shortage, the plan addresses barriers to homeownership, preservation of existing housing, and the urgency of lowering costs for renters. While […]
Guest Post | October 26, 2023
Portland Boots Community Character Requirement for Senior Housing
In a decision that could have sweeping implications for senior housing projects, the City of Portland, Oregon, recently issued a decision that will significantly expand where developers can site their projects...
Solutions | June 29, 2023
The Role of Middle Housing in Tackling America’s Housing Challenge
From large cities and metropolitan areas to smaller cities and towns, communities across the country are grappling with rising housing costs. In most local jurisdictions, zoning ordinances have resulted in only two types of allowable housing: single-detached homes or mid- to high-rise multifamily residential buildings. Often, most land zoned for residential use only permits single-detached housing, resulting in limited housing options and ever-rising costs to buy or rent as demand for housing outpaces supply.
homelessness | May 24, 2023
Land Use Regulations, Local Zoning Ordinances, and Homelessness
This piece defines land use regulations and zoning ordinances. It describes the roles that cities, counties, and states can play in adapting or implementing policies to lower housing costs and boost the affordable housing supply for low-income households.
Condo Defect Liability | January 23, 2023
How Condominium Defect Liability (CDL) Legislation Can Drive Underproduction
While protecting home buyers and tenants is essential, current policies are not well calibrated to both protect condo owners and ensure strong market conditions. In the highly litigious environments of some states, the risk of building condominiums is just too high, not only for builders and developers, but also for contractors, subcontractors, insurers, and funders.
Guest Post | November 10, 2022
Parking Reform Integral to Solving Housing Underproduction
For over 60 years, cities have imposed minimum parking mandates for most land uses, mandates whose impacts, particularly on contributing to housing underproduction, are well established. Car parking is expensive to build and maintain, and these costs are passed on to residents whether they own cars or not. An above-ground structure can easily cost $30,000 […]
Guest Post | August 25, 2022
Confessions of an Impact Fee Pioneer
Impact fees are part of an infrastructure financing system that, as currently configured in many local governments across the nation, acts as a strong barrier to the building of needed housing, particularly affordable homes. After years of academic and advocacy work in this area, I have developed a set of recommendations to address some of the […]
| May 16, 2022
Up for Growth Action Praises Administration’s Housing Supply Action Plan
Washington, DC – Up for Growth Action, a federal advocacy organization that advocates for policies to achieve housing equity, eliminate systemic barriers, and create more homes, today released the following statement from CEO Mike Kingsella, who praised the Biden Administration’s Housing Supply Action Plan, a multi-faceted proposal designed to address the nation’s urgent housing affordability and supply crisis: “The […]