State Preemption: A Means To Reform Zoning, or a Threat to Localism?

State preemption is a controversial issue in the planning world—but what’s the Strong Towns stance on it?

Upzoned, Podcast, Top Story, Housing, ZoningStrong TownsJune 29, 2022Podcast, podcast, Upzoned, state government, local government, Municipalism, housing, zoning, affordable housing, housing affordability, housing activism

An Epidemic of Blight Collides With a Pandemic

In Detroit's 48205 zip code, from 2014 to 2020, the number of vacant homes hardly budged, despite $25M spent demolishing 1,628 vacant homes. When the pandemic hit, vacant homes plummeted. What happened?

Housing, Top StoryAlex AlsupJune 28, 2022housing, housing affordability, homeowners, Homeownership, homeownership, housing crisis, Housing Crisis, housing market, blight, Detroit, housing policy

Looking for an Affordable Starter Home? HUD Suggests Trying a Manufactured Home.

Manufactured homes were promoted at the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s 2022 Innovative Housing Showcase. Could this be a viable affordable housing option?

Upzoned, Podcast, Top Story, HousingStrong TownsJune 22, 2022Podcast, podcast, Upzoned, housing, housing market, accessory dwelling units, affordable housing, housing affordability, federal government

NIMBY: Hero, Villain, or None of the Above?

This week’s Upzoned episode reflects on how the nuances of housing policy don’t lend themselves to broad stereotypes.

Upzoned, Podcast, Top Story, HousingStrong TownsJune 15, 2022Podcast, podcast, Upzoned, housing, Housing, housing market, NIMBY, neighborhood change, YIMBY

A Parallel Option: Social Housing (Part 3)

Social housing is not a silver bullet, but can be part of a broader vision for a fairer and more responsive housing market.

Herriges, HousingDaniel HerrigesJune 15, 2022housing, housing cost, housing affordability, housing crisis, Housing Crisis, Housing, housing policy, co-housing, social housing series

Legalizing Incremental Change—Everywhere—To Meet America’s Housing Needs

For too long, our housing policy has put investor returns and macroeconomic goals over the universal human need for shelter. The Strong Towns approach to incremental housing is a badly needed corrective.

Inflation or Lower Housing Values: Pick Your Cleanest Dirty Shirt?

The Fed’s pandemic actions to loosen up capital unseized a market and fueled a housing boom—but now, a potential opposite reaction could lose U.S. taxpayers billions and be bad for housing.

Upzoned, Podcast, Top Story, HousingStrong TownsJune 8, 2022Podcast, podcast, Upzoned, Federal Reserve, housing, Housing, housing market, Inflation

What Is a Housing Shortage, Anyway?

Everyone’s heard of the housing shortage…so why is the “shortage” part of that phrase so poorly defined?

Housing, Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesJune 1, 2022housing, housing affordability, housing crisis, Housing Crisis, housing activism

Social Housing and the Strong Towns Approach (Part 2)

Why isn’t social housing the silver bullet it's sometimes sold as, and what it would take to be successful? (Hint: You still have to fix the market.)

Herriges, Housing, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesMay 26, 2022housing, housing cost, housing affordability, housing crisis, Housing Crisis, Housing, housing policy, co-housing, social housing series

Corporate Investors Own Nearly Half of This City's Residential Property

What does this case study imply for housing in the U.S., as a whole?

Upzoned, Podcast, Top Story, HousingStrong TownsMay 25, 2022Podcast, podcast, Upzoned, housing, housing crisis, Housing Crisis, housing market, Housing, housing policy, Homeownership, homeownership

CityNerd: Which Affordable, Walkable City Should You Move To?

This week’s CityNerd takes you on a tour of 10 cities you might not expect to be the most affordable, livable, walkable, and transit-friendly places in America.

Housing, Video, Top StoryJay StangeMay 25, 2022housing, housing affordability, housing cost, Housing, CityNerd, cities

Social Housing and the Strong Towns Approach (Part 1)

Forget what you've heard; this isn't your granddad's social housing.

Herriges, Housing, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesMay 25, 2022housing, housing cost, housing affordability, housing crisis, Housing Crisis, Housing, housing policy, co-housing, social housing series

Wealth and Buildings

In the realm of urban planning, there’s plenty of discourse out there about housing affordability—but what about household wealth building?

Housing, Suburban Experiment, Urban Design, Planning Profession, Top StoryKevin KlinkenbergMay 23, 2022Kevin Klinkenberg, housing, housing affordability, finance, housing finance, Homeownership, homeownership, urban planning, urbanism, suburbs, suburban experiment, suburbanization

Tyranny Won’t Get Us More Housing

Perceived threats to a home's value often prompt homeowners to shut down any discussion about neighborhood changes. But eliminating opportunities for such reactions isn’t helpful, either.

Housing, Zoning, Top StoryJay StangeMay 19, 2022housing, housing crisis, housing activism, NIMBY, public engagement, New York, zoning, upzoning, neighborhood change

To Address the Housing Crisis, We Need a Fairer Tax System

Two charts illustrate the massive housing shortage in Buncombe County, NC, and show why we need to get property taxes right.

Housing, Sheppard, Urban3, Top Story, Transparent AccountingSeairra SheppardMay 17, 2022housing, housing crisis, Housing Crisis, housing affordability, Housing, housing cost, tax revenue, Just Accounting for Health, Urban3

4 Key Rules for Getting More Housing Where You Live

One of the easiest ways we can have more housing that more people can afford is to allow that housing to be built in the first place. In other words, we need to readdress our zoning codes.

Housing, Zoning, Top StoryStrong TownsMay 11, 2022housing cost, housing, housing affordability, housing activism, Housing, zoning, Local-Motive Tour, taking action, how to

Herriges Rezoned: A City Shaped by Many Hands

Incrementalism is not an end in itself. Nor is it about a “small-is-beautiful” aesthetic for its own sake. Instead, it’s a practical pathway toward resilient, financially sound places.

Herriges, Housing, Urban Design, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesMay 11, 2022Chaotic but Smart, traditional development pattern, small-scale developers, Charleston, incremental development, incremental, incrementalism, North Carolina, urban design, housing, Housing

Should Airbnbs Be Taxed as Residential or Commercial?

How have we come to the conclusion that most short-term rentals are taxed as “residential,” when many have no residents?

Housing, Sheppard, Urban3, Top Story, Transparent AccountingSeairra SheppardMay 10, 2022Just Accounting for Health, Urban3, airbnb, property tax, tax revenue, homeowners, Homeownership, North Carolina, housing, housing market

Herriges Rezoned: Your City Isn't Changing as Fast as You Think

The belief that we’re going to radically transform our cities from the top down defies reality. Despite widespread anxiety about urban growth and change, the vast majority of places aren’t changing very much at all.

Herriges, Housing, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesMay 4, 2022incremental growth, infill, Infill Development, neighborhood change, housing

Suburban Design is a Tragedy of the Commons

We tend to choose larger homes than we want our neighbors to choose. The result: suburban-style development that doesn't match what people actually want from their communities.