Smart policies can ensure that low- and moderate-income households can find suitable housing in good neighborhoods where transportation costs are low. The research is clear: upzoning works.
"If we want to increase the supply of affordable housing, it's important to understand that it's not just about housing. Too often, efforts to increase affordability ignore transportation costs, resulting in cheap housing in isolated areas with high vehicle expenses. When all costs are considered, it's clear that the best way to increase affordability and economic opportunity is “upzoning” — allowing more housing in a given area — in accessible, high-opportunity neighborhoods."
"In the past, affordability was defined as households being able to spend less than 30 percent of their budget on housing, but many experts now define it as spending less than 45 percent on housing and transportation combined. That definition recognizes that a cheap house is not truly affordable if it’s located in an isolated area with high transportation costs, and that households can rationally spend more for housing in a walkable, mixed-use neighborhood where transportation is cheaper."
"This has important policy implications beyond simply increasing the supply of homes that people can afford. Smart-growth policies that increase affordable infill — more housing in existing residential areas — also can help achieve many economic, social and environmental goals. We know that children tend to be happier, healthier and more successful if they grow up in high-opportunity neighborhoods: areas with mixed incomes, good schools and convenient access to services and jobs."
FULL STORY: A Recipe for Achieving Real Housing Affordability
‘Forward Together’ Bus System Redesign Rolling Out in Portland
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Plan to Potentially Remove Downtown Milwaukee’s Interstate Faces Public Scrutiny
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700-Acre Master-Planned Community Planned in Utah
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More Cities Ponder the End of Drive-Thrus
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Air Pollution World’s Worst Public Health Threat, Report Says
Air pollution is more likely to take years life off the lifespan of the average human than any other external factor, according to a recent report out of the University of Chicago.
Placer County
City of Morganton
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Dongguan Binhaiwan Bay Area Management Committee
City of Waukesha, WI
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Indiana Borough
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