Zoning codes across the country attempt to define what a "family" is, often in ways that are not only outdated but also legally tenuous at best. Instead of pretending we can enforce arbitrary definitions of family, let’s focus on what actually impacts people's lives.
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Back in September, Sacramento became the first city in California to allow multiunit housing in all residential neighborhoods. Here’s what that means for residents seeking housing.
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Multigenerational living was common before restrictive zoning laws made it illegal to have more than one household in a single-family home. By letting homeowners convert existing houses into duplexes or triplexes, cities can give residents the flexibility to live where they want at a price they can afford.
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Here’s how Portland, Oregon, is getting more housing built that blends into existing neighborhoods and earns the approval of nearby residents, all while increasing affordability and supporting the local community.
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When suddenly faced with paying his mortgage alone, Noah Tang of Bloomington, Illinois, went old school. He turned his spare rooms into monthly rentals for students in his college town. This helped him make ends meet and also helped him build community.
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Modern zoning, building and fire codes make it impossible to build many of the types of housing that people actually want to live in. Reforming those codes to allow for single-stair construction can help undo some of this damage.
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The United States has attached a societal and even moral weight to the Suburban Experiment, codifying it across the country. But that wasn’t always the case. Many beloved and iconic building styles are incremental, and they’re proof that America can return to a more resilient way of building.
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Change can be scary and off-putting, and the construction of houses that don’t fit into an existing neighborhood — in this case because of size — can be a source of tension. But a change in neighborhood scale can be a good thing, as larger houses allow for important flexibility in housing options, like multigenerational and multifamily living.
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Here’s one important question to ask about how your city regulates housing.
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Most of your city’s zoning likely prohibits multifamily housing—even of a modest form, like triple-deckers. If so, you have the arrogance of early zoning reformers to thank for it.
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Why does multifamily housing has the same, copied look in most places?
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Just as kids ignore sidewalks in favor of walking a more efficient path through the grass, homeowners in California are voting with their toolbelts to create zoning desire paths.
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Living with extended family is something Americans often associate with immigrant households. But why?
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Stickplexes — dense residential structures on 2,500 square feet of land per unit or less — are an underutilized option for many towns and cities. They can often go where missing middle cannot.
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A bill making its way through the Vermont legislature could be a model for making communities more affordable, more walkable, and more prosperous.
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Do the new guidelines go too far, not far enough, or are they just right (for now)?
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How is it possible that so many of our cities are seeing their footprints grow, but their populations shrink? The answer to this paradox might surprise you.
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Housing development in the United States isn’t a one-size-fits-all model. Different types of neighborhoods and urban forms have different financing needs. Kudos to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for taking these steps.
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What we’re witnessing isn’t a modern aberration of multi-story buildings being imposed on the traditional city. It’s actually a return to the historic pattern after an odd twentieth century hiatus.
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Small developers who want to build modest mixed-use buildings on their town's Main Street are not able to access the favorable financing available to the developers of large single use suburban apartment complexes.
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