Housing

Neighborhoods on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro face a multitude of challenges, including social and racial inequity, and a lack of public services. This organization is hoping to prove that solar energy can benefit neighborhoods, lower electric bills, and provide jobs.

In several western states, state-owned trust lands were created to support schools and other community benefits.

A lack of internet access and charging stations makes it challenging for unhoused folks to maintain a working cellphone, posing a threat to their safety and ability to follow up with service providers or connect with employers.

During the pandemic, community development organizations had to work double-time to adapt to residents’ needs. For some, that work yielded important lessons about better helping their communities, permanently.

Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill that overrode dozens of local tenant protection laws won there in recent years. How are housing organizers in Florida fighting back? And what can other organizers do if they live in a state that is hostile to tenant protections?

A SCOTUS ruling that protects a homeowner’s equity may end up benefiting speculators and hurting land banks.

Officials in Chicago are struggling to address the city’s homelessness and housing crises. So why does the Chicago Public Housing Authority have one of the highest rates of vacancy in the country?

In 2022, a government task force released an action plan about combating bias in the appraisal industry. How can CDFIs fight back against the damage caused by under-appraisals?

In September, Shelterforce’s Shelby R. King was invited to participate in a virtual “Housing Hangout.” Panelists discussed the history of the Section 8 program, its strong points and failings, and ideas for large-scale reforms.

In 2018, Shelterforce wrote about the Center for Community Progress’s recommendations for tax reform in West Virginia to address vacancy. Guided by CCP’s suggestions, the state auditor’s office has recently passed two laws to change its tax sales process and keep properties in use.

Many guests at Motels4Now are on their second or third stays—but staff say that doesn’t equal failure, and the numbers bear them out.

Courts are curbing cities’ ability to threaten, cite, or arrest people merely for being homeless. Now states and cities are searching for loopholes to avoid the injunctions.