General News

California Governor Gavin Newsom announced a compromise on proposed legislation to cap rent increases statewide and ultimately address the housing crisis.

Industry to honor the Joes at October 16 luncheon at Boston’s Harvard Club WASHINGTON, DC (September 9, 2019) – The National Housing & Rehabilitation Association (NH&RA) announced today that two affordable housing champions– Joe Hagan, President Emeritus at the National Equity Fund, Inc. (NEF) and Lyndel J. “Joe” Wishcamper, President at The Wishcamper Companies, Inc.–will […]

A new brief from the Furman Center, NYCHA’s Road Ahead: Capital and Operating Budget Needs, Shortfalls, and Plans, reviews how the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) plans to address its massive public housing repair needs in the coming years and identified a number of serious potential challenges. “In a 2017 Physical Needs Assessment (PNA), […]

The National Housing Conference (NHC) released a new white paper on housing finance reform that calls for bipartisan cooperation between Congress and the Trump administration to complete housing finance reform leading to the release of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from conservatorship. he paper establishes seven conditions to guide administrative and statutory reform to ensure that the U.S. will have a well-functioning housing finance system that provides consistent, affordable credit to borrowers across the nation and through all parts of the credit cycle, while minimizing the risk of another taxpayer-funded bailout.

This New York Times article debates the merits of Opportunity Zones arguing “billions of untaxed investment profits are beginning to pour into high-end apartment buildings and hotels, storage facilities that employ only a handful of workers, and student housing in bustling college towns, among other projects.” The article explores how developments in New Orleans, Miami, […]

In a new paper, Michael Stegman with the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studiers (JCHS) argues that “eliminating exclusionary land use regulations should be the civil rights issue of our time.” Stegman looks back at five presidential commissions and federal initiatives to eliminate local barriers to housing development, put in motion by both Democratic and Republican administrations, arguing that each was based on the proposition that unnecessary land use regulations drive up production costs and drive down housing supply.

The San Antonio Housing Authority (SAHA) board approved a $486 million funding package that will support a range of projects, including a 326-unit apartment building with half the units reserved for renters earning up to 50 percent of the area median income (AMI), a 252-unit complex entirely reserved for residents earning up to 50 percent […]

The San Jose City Council is set to adopt a new Housing Payment Equity Ordinance that prohibits the discrimination of income sources. The ordinance will cover all rentals—including single-family homes, duplexes, multifamily units, co-living spaces, accessory dwelling units, guest houses and mobile homes—with one exception: rooms in single-family homes where the landlord lives in the house, too.

The Our Homes Our Votes 2020 campaign is circulating an organizational sign-on letter urging ABC, Univison and the next debate moderators to ask candidates about housing solutions in the September Democratic presidential primary debates. The letter specifically calls on the debate moderators to ask each presidential candidate how they would address the nation’s housing and […]

This How Housing Matters article explains how energy efficiency upgrades can boost low-income multifamily properties’ net operating incomes, save low-income households money on energy bills and improve environmental outcomes—making investments in these upgrades a triple win. This evidence roundup highlights why policymakers and funders should continue to push housing providers, utility companies and intermediary organizations to bolster their efforts to bring energy efficiency upgrades to both subsidized and unsubsidized multifamily rental housing.

A new report from the Center for American Progress urges lawmakers to address the nation’s affordable housing crisis when tackling climate change in order to build more resilient and prepared communities. These actions include supporting equitable evacuation and disaster recovery for all survivors; expanding investments in federal rental and homeless assistance programs; prioritizing equitable housing policies and just community development; building resilient infrastructure; and increasing funding for disaster mitigation and climate change adaptation.

The Urban Institute has released a report titled “Affordable Housing Investment: A Guide for Nonprofit Hospitals and Health Systems.”. The report presents key concepts and strategies for designing and implementing housing development projects, complemented by examples and supplemental resources.