CDFIs Shouldn’t Act Like Banks, But Too Often Do
When receiving bank funding, CDFIs often limit their investments in accordance with bank restrictions. How can reforms to the Community Reinvestment Act help center the needs of underserved communities?
LA Isn’t Enforcing Its Section 8 Discrimination Ban. Could This Lawsuit...
In 2019, Los Angeles passed an ordinance banning discrimination against Section 8 voucher holders. But it has never sued to enforce the protection.
Who Can Afford Housing in Madison, Wisconsin?
The city is growing fast and building a lot of housing. But the new housing isn’t keeping pace with the need, especially for high-income and extremely low-income earners.
Eminent and Notorious: Radical Urban Planner Chester Hartman (1936-2023)
An appreciation of the life and work of Chester Hartman, a radical planner in the service of a vision of social justice.
Philanthropy Has Been Trying to Buy Buildings for the Arts for...
San Francisco’s CounterPulse shows how arts organizations can take advantage of a lease-to-own model.
What LA’s New Shelter Program Can Learn from Statewide Efforts
As LA’s Inside Safe program works to transition unhoused Angelenos from hotels into permanent housing, its leaders should look to California’s Project Roomkey for lessons.
The Ugly Truth Behind “We Buy Ugly Houses”
HomeVestors of America, the self-proclaimed “largest homebuyer in the U.S.,” trains its nearly 1,150 franchisees to zero in on homeowners’ desperation.
New Yorkers Need Land. The NYPD Is Sitting On Nearly 150...
A new map reveals how much land in New York City is being wasted by city police—often sitting vacant, rather than serving the public good.
The Dirty Little Secret—Rising Property Values Are Incompatible with Affordability
Rising property values come with positive community development, but this shift can make neighborhoods inaccessible to low-income renters and fixed-income homeowners.
Six Steps to Ensuring a Strong Right to Organize for Tenants
Getting solid legal protections in place will help tenants stick up for themselves more safely and effectively.
When a Land Bank Starts a Land Trust
An Ohio land bank adds to its developing power through a nonprofit land trust.
Land Owned by LLCs More Likely to Be Vacant
NYC's land speculators use LLCs to evade legal responsibility while sitting on vacant property.
Landlords on Notice: Section 8 Discrimination Will Cost You
Landmark lawsuits in D.C., New York, and California make source of income discrimination risky for landlords.
How We Won Rent Control in Pasadena, California
Never underestimate the power of—and need for—a ground game.
Who Gets Tenant Protection Vouchers?
A program to stabilize residents whose subsidized housing is disrupted has also been used to support other highly vulnerable residents, but those uses are a matter of controversy.
Should Virginia Build Housing for Public Servants on Public Land?
Amid widespread rent increases, directing public land to affordable housing could allow people to stay in their communities, as well as reduce commutes and employee turnover.
Colorado Passed a Historic Affordable Housing Measure. Is It Enough?
The state underfunded affordable housing for decades, but voters recently approved $300 million in new annual spending—and more could be coming.
PHAs Could House People with Convictions, But Most Don’t
Policy changes by local public housing authorities can be transformative for Americans with convictions, and for their families.
Her Story, Her Power—a Shelterforce Webinar
Schlonn Hawkins, CEO and publisher of Shelterforce, moderated “Her Story, Her Power,” a discussion with four women of color who shared their unique journeys of leading change and fighting injustice.
Appraisal Bias Is the Fair Housing Issue of the Day
Newly released data on home appraisal practices is a step forward in the fight against racially biased appraisals. There’s still a long way to go.