Q: Does Airbnb Cause Rents to Increase?
A: Yes! Since hosts can make 50 to 200 percent more on short-term rentals than on long-term rentals, Airbnb affects purchase prices as well.
Q: What Do All These Housing Affordability Terms Mean?
While we use terms like "affordable housing," "moderate income," "housing poverty," and "area median income" often, we thought it'd be helpful to explain what all these housing affordability terms mean. Make sure you're using these 19 terms correctly.
Q: Can Including Rent and Utility Payments in Credit Scores Reduce Racial Disparities in...
Including rent and utility payments in credit reports and scoring models can increase credit scores, and reduce racial disparities in credit scores.
Q: What Do All These Rent Regulation Terms Mean?
As rents have been rising, organizing for rent regulations have gained steam. However, the terms used to describe rent regulations can be unclear.
Q: Can Supporting Community Development Improve Outcomes for the Health Sector?
Yes! Over 50 percent of premature deaths in the U.S. can be attributed to preventable non-medical factors, specifically behavioral, environmental, and social conditions.
Q: Does Affordable Housing Development Lower Nearby Property Values?
A. No. No. No. Are 56 studies enough no for you?
Q: Why don’t low-income families save?
A. Actually they do! However, they tend to be saving for the short term, rather than the long term.
Q: Would More Housing Vouchers Increase Rents?
A: So far, researchers haven't found that an increase in vouchers by itself causes rents to rise.
Q: Are manufactured homes a bad form of affordable housing?
A: Not any more! There are many myths out there about manufactured (or "mobile") homes, but in fact they can be a very important source of quality affordable housing...
Q: What’s the Point of Shared-Equity Homeownership in Weak Market Areas?
Shared-equity homeownership is best known as a tool to fight displacement in hot-market areas. But in fact, it has many advantages in weak-market areas too.
Q: Do inclusionary zoning requirements halt development?
A: No! Research shows that hasn't been the case. And here's what local officials in places that have implemented it had to say . . .
Q: Is It Time to Bury Racially Loaded Planning and Development Terms?
Shelterforce has gathered some racially loaded terms that are common in our field. We suggest you use these sparingly and carefully, if at all.
Q: Do Section 8 Voucher Holders Increase Crime in a Neighborhood?
A: No! This is a perennial fear, but research shows that additional voucher holders don't change the crime rate at all. However it does show that . . .
Q: Do inclusionary housing requirements make housing prices go up for everyone else?
A: No, they do not. Market-rate developers are business people. They charge as much as the market will bear. When housing prices go up . . .
Q: Did the housing crisis prove low-income people can’t be successful homeowners?
No! Two at-scale, long-term lending programs show that if the process is done right, low-income homeowners can be as successful as prime borrowers--or more.
Q: Does Shared-Equity Homeownership Build Assets?
A: Yes! And keeps them safer than traditional homeownership does.
Q: Did Extending More Credit to Subprime Borrowers Cause the Foreclosure Crisis?
There are people who believe that the foreclosure crisis occurred because too many unqualified borrowers became homeowners. What actually happened was ...
Q: Do economic development incentives support small businesses?
A. Not very much. Despite the claims of many states, when you look at the numbers, the vast majority of taxpayer dollars directed to economic development go to big corporations.
Q: Do Rent Regulations Make the Housing Crisis Worse?
A: No! Despite common fears, decades of evidence shows that rent regulation doesn't restrict housing supply and quality.
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Q: Is a Land Bank the Same as a Land Trust?
A: Nope. They are totally different, though complementary tools. This chart will walk you through the differences.