State & Local Policy

To help ease the burden of finding affordable housing, officials in Buena Vista say businesses can allow employees to live on their property—but only temporarily.

As homeowners’ insurance companies and lenders increasingly factor climate risk into their business strategies, communities may see a resurgence of racial and economic exclusion that mimics redlining. But our hands aren’t tied—we can do something about it.

The Supreme Court ruling gave cities new leeway to criminalize homelessness. In Oakland, advocates say it’s fueled more forceful encampment sweeps and a rollback of earlier efforts at cooperation.

If we tie rent regulation to income, we lose the policy’s benefits for neighborhoods and their residents.

It’s getting tougher for immigrant communities to believe they still have rights as renters—even if they are living in the country legally. Here’s how tenant organizers are helping these communities push back against ICE and the landlords who are weaponizing the current political environment.

The president floated cutting Community Development Block Grants entirely from the federal budget, which Congress has so far declined to do. How do these grants get used at the local level?

Racial bias in appraisals is still a problem—but there are steps we can take to fight back. Philadelphia’s reforms are a model to follow.

Local politics seem to be shifting in the Garden State. More towns have submitted plans to show how they will provide their ‘fair share’ of affordable housing than in the past, and the state has a new way to work with municipalities that push back against their housing obligations.

In the last several months, lawmakers in more than two dozen cities and states have made strides to stop landlords from using anti-competitive rental software to determine how much to charge for rent. Shelterforce looks at the wins and losses so far.

The mayoral candidate made a rent freeze central to his campaign. Here’s how his supporters used in-person campaigning to clinch a victory, and what’s ahead.

The analysis shows that these laws, including bans on sleeping outside, don’t reduce homelessness. Why are they on the rise?

Thousands of companies offer tenant screening tools that promise to make life easier for landlords and property managers. But reports show that the data these companies use is often riddled with errors and relies on information that has no bearing on whether someone will be a good tenant.