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The Housing Blind Spot That Undermines Climate Strategy

Housing policies influence 53 percent of climate pollution from the average American household by determining whether people can choose to live near jobs and shops in smaller homes or are limited to driving everywhere from bigger, energy-hungry houses. Yet federal…

How Blocking New Homes Hurts Poor Renters the Most

Building more homes — even expensive luxury apartments — cuts rents most in older, affordable buildings where low-income families live.  Between 2017 and 2024, poor neighborhoods experienced rent spikes 10 percent higher than those in affluent areas. However, cities that…

This One Weird Trick Could Could Cut NYC Rent by 18%

New York City could add 71% more residential floorspace by 2060, and reduce rents by 18% over the next 40 years, if it removed certain restrictions on home building.  In “Can We Rebuild a City? The Dynamics of Urban Redevelopment,”…

Why is Building Slowing Down in America’s Boomtowns?

Texas has long been America’s poster child for more affordable housing, thanks to its minimal regulations and abundant land. However, this hasn’t prevented Texas cities like Austin from developing the same cost pressures as California’s metro areas, which built far…

America’s Missing 15 Million Homes

American home building has slowed down significantly over the past 25 years. If the U.S. housing stock had grown from 2000 to 2020 at the same rate as it did from 1980 to 2000, there would be 15 million more…