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Policy
The rules of the game—and the attitudes of the players—have an enormous effect on community development work at all levels. Here we look at some of the conversations about how to shift that policy for the better.
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How State Coalitions Are Advancing Community Ownership of Housing
In recent years, housing coalitions promoting community land trusts and real estate cooperatives have formed in multiple cities and states—and they are achieving results. Nonetheless, a lot of work is needed to achieve the policy changes these groups desire.
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As Rent Relief Efforts Drag on, Treasury is Redistributing Funds
“This is not about reward and punishment … It’s about speeding up effective relief for families in need of housing security and eviction protection.”
Making Inclusionary Housing Programs a Force for Racial Equity
Three city administrators go beyond the press releases to talk about what it really takes to make an inclusionary housing requirement serve households of color.
How to Make Universal Vouchers Actually Work
If Congress gave the Housing Choice Voucher program enough money to serve every income-eligible applicant, what other reforms would be needed so every voucher recipient could find a decent home in a suitable area?
New Public Housing? HUD Has Found a Way
For decades, the number of public housing units across the U.S. has been shrinking. But within the limits of the law and funding, HUD has figured out a way to get back some of the housing that has been lost.
On Housing, Democrats Sure Look Like Republicans
At one time, the Democratic Party stood for policies that successfully addressed the country’s chronic housing crisis. What changed, and why?
Realtors Reckon with Race
A new generation of real estate agents are aiming for meaningful change in an industry most famous for championing and enforcing segregation.
A Once Reliable Way to Refinance Older Affordable Housing Gets Harder to Access
It had been relatively easy for a developer to get 4 percent tax credits, but that’s no longer true in many places. How is this affecting nonprofit housing developers—and could the human infrastructure bill help?
Three Ways to Immediately Increase Transparency in the Housing Market
Transparency in housing transactions and in subsidized housing practices is a simple and powerful means of producing and sustaining movements for policy change.
Housing Organizations Pivot to Provide COVID Testing and Vaccinations
Some CDCs hope that building trust can save lives now while building a stronger foundation for long-term health. “COVID is a catalyst forcing us to think outside the box, to pivot, to explore our partnerships in different ways.”
Protecting Domestic Violence Survivors From Eviction
COVID-19 has led to a surge in intimate partner violence. The Violence Against Women Act prohibits evictions of survivors simply because they have experienced violence in their homes, but such protections can be lacking in LIHTC-funded developments.
Universal Housing Vouchers: A Promise or a Pipe Dream?
President Biden promised to expand the Housing Choice Voucher program so that everyone who qualifies for a voucher gets one. What exactly would that change entail, and how long could it be before we see it happen?
How State and Local Governments Can Avoid Mass Evictions
Beyond the immediate need to stop mass evictions, there is much more that state and local officials can do to facilitate housing stability in a longer-term transition out of the pandemic emergency. The time for those critical measures is now.