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Friday Roundup 12-17-21
New York City is considering a law that would prohibit landlords from considering most criminal convictions while screening prospective tenants. One ex-convict told a reporter, “Just think of the worst thing you’ve ever done, and suppose someone held that against you for the rest of your life.” Context matters. There is a huge difference between…
When the Context is Dropped
Denver is considering a law that would require developers to include below-market rate housing in new projects in order to obtain city approval. Known as inclusionary zoning, the proposed law is being modeled after a similar ordinance in Atlanta. Both laws are providing an example of the poor decisions that are made when the context…
Friday Roundup 9-24-21
In early September, New York extended its eviction moratorium to January 15, 2022. The state’s largest landlord group quickly challenged the law. The group said that the new moratorium made only superficial changes to a previous law that “crumbled” after a Supreme Court ruling. That ruling took issue with a part of the law that…
A Flawed Framework
ByjbpAs I point out in my book, The Affordable Housing Crisis: Causes and Cures, for more than one hundred years housing policy has been dominated by the same flawed framework. Each “new” housing policy simply repeats policies that have previously failed. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is an example. He ran on a promise…
An Example of the Elephant in the Room
Last week, I wrote about the elephant in the room regarding the affordable housing crisis for low0income households. The media and housing activists regularly subject us to sob stories to promote “renters’ protections,” but they say nothing about the choices that many low-income households make. An example comes from an article in The Fresno Bee….
Affordable Housing and Zoning
Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson has launched an initiative aimed at making housing more affordable. He has correctly identified zoning and land-use regulations as a major factor in soaring housing costs in many locales. Zoning and land-use regulations arbitrarily restrict the freedom of builders and developers. Minimum lot sizes, prescribed land…