Interest is growing in creating zoning data for the purpose of conducting applied urban research on zoning reform, housing affordability, and other topics. Recently, two new sources of zoning information have emerged that complement previous data sources that were often limited in detail or spatial extent. First, the National Zoning Atlas (NZA) has implemented a standardized methodology for the manual construction of variables from zoning codes, and this methodology has been applied in a growing number of states. Second, researchers are exploring the use of natural language processing (NLP) to automate the creation of variables from zoning codes. Mleczko and Desmond (2023) presented one noteworthy example of NLP methods, the National Zoning and Land Use Database (NZLUD), in a paper accompanied by & lstrok;a nationwide dataset of variables for 2,639 jurisdictions. In this article, we assess the quality and usefulness of that new data source by comparing it with data previously created using the NZA method, which provides us with a high-quality ground truth. To do this, we translated the NZA variables for 14 jurisdictions in West Michigan into relevant NZLUD variables by aggregating numerical data reported at the level of zoning districts into categorical data reported at the level of jurisdictions. We then compared out results against NZLUD data for the same jurisdictions by calculating correlation coefficients or matching scores. The results show variable-level correlations ranging from 0.04 (maximum permitted density) to 40 (minimum required parking). These results suggest that although datasets such as the NZLUD may provide initial insights for planners and policymakers seeking to address exclusionary zoning, accurate and detailed analysis will continue to require manual methods like the NZA. This article provides a detailed discussion of the structure of two leading national zoning datasets, a specific quality analysis, and alternative approaches to creating this important type of data
Disabled veterans face unique housing challenges shaped by the intersection of service-related and disability-related barriers. This article uses 5-year public use microdata from the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS) database from 2018 and 2023, coupled with a unique state-level database of veterans' resources, to compare the likelihood of poor housing conditions between the general population and groups defined by veteran status, disability status, and the combination of both to assess whether those factors protect against poor housing outcomes. The results indicated that disability status and veteran status alone offer specific protections for people to prevent negative housing outcomes but, when combined, may instead generate negative housing outcomes for individuals at the intersection of both statuses: disabled veterans. Further, existing policies and resources are insufficient to meet the specific challenges of disabled veterans.
Rent burden, the ratio of rent to income, is a housing-need statistic readily developed from the American Community Survey (ACS). ACS rent burden statistics are heavily used in policy advocacy. In this article, we compare aggregate administrative data for households in housing subsidy programs with the ACS microdata sample for Massachusetts. We find that the ACS overstates the prevalence of high-rent burden among Extremely Low-Income households. By this finding, we do not intend to diminish the perceived urgency for housing development to meet substantial needs at all income levels. In fact, our finding may be interpreted to increase the measured need for "Very" (as opposed to "Extremely") Low-Income households. Our primary conclusion is that ACS rent burden data should always be presented along with administrative data and should never be presented alone, at least for Extremely Low-Income households. Policymakers depend on accurate assessments of housing need.
Communication and coordination among partners are critical to achieving a shared goal, especially when addressing homelessness. The Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) program is a partnership between the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and community nonprofit organizations (grantees) that aims to prevent and end homelessness among veterans. The study team conducted a qualitative study with SSVF program stakeholders, including SSVF grantee employees, VA homeless services providers, and veterans using SSVF services. The study team focused on themes related to communication and coordination. This article highlights these findings.The study team conducted semi-structured telephone interviews with 20 grantee employees, 21 VA homeless services providers, and 83 veterans receiving SSVF program services. The VA homeless services providers and SSVF grantee employees described their relationships as positive, with effective communication and coordination. However, these key informants reported communication challenges regarding changes in policy and eligibility requirements. Some veterans reported difficulties receiving timely and clear communication from grantees. All three groups recognized the high staff turnover and burnout among SSVF grantee employees, which negatively impacts the program. Participants offered strategies for improving communication, including additional meetings between VA homeless services providers and SSVF grantees, establishing consistent points of contact, and ensuring greater transparency and access to critical information needed to serve veterans. Additional recommendations included addressing staffing challenges both at the VA and grantees, enhancing education on program roles and services, expanding training opportunities for grantee employees, and maintaining an updated list of available resources and policy changes.
Housing cost burden (HCB), the share of a household's income dedicated to housing and related expenses, is a useful metric for understanding housing insecurity trends. The share of veteran households experiencing HCB-a spending ratio greater than 30 or 50 percent on housing needs-is considerably less than that of nonveterans, potentially because of the additional income veterans receive as compensation for their service, such as disability compensation, pensions, and so on. Research on HCB typically considers an aggregated measure of household income from all sources. This article uses the Survey of Income and Program Participation to understand how the share of households experiencing HCB differs when considering different income streams-for example, HCB relative to private income only, HCB relative to private income plus benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and so on. Including income from VA benefits, especially VA disability compensation, in the HCB calculation contributes drastically to housing security for veteran households. Adding income for non-VA public sources, such as Social Security benefits, provides additional housing security. These results highlight the importance of VA benefits and other nonwage income in combating housing insecurity for veteran households that depend on these benefits
Refining the operational definition of shrinking cities is critical for addressing the unique challenges associated with urban shrinkage. This article revisits a popular operational definition-one Ganning and Tighe (2021) proposed to better identify these cities in the United States. This analysis tests definitions that vary by base year, date range, and geographic boundaries. The findings suggest that using a consistent date range while shifting the base year forward is preferable to continuously expanding the range. In addition, allowing for boundary changes, such as annexations, reduces the number of cities classified as shrinking. A comparison with Ganning and Tighe's results reveals that shrinking cities have become more prevalent since 2010 and are increasingly found outside the Great Lakes region.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, states and localities across the United States received unprecedented amounts of funding to provide emergency rental assistance (ERA) to residents, as well as considerable flexibility in distributing these funds. The result was wide variation in program leadership, subsidy structure, application process, and outreach that was in many ways unprecedented for a federal rental assistance program. The authors use a national database of ERA programs combined with the results of three national surveys of program administrators to explore the variation along these four axes. Drawing on interviews with program administrators, this article also explores the roots of program decisionmaking. Given the high level of regulation and limited opportunities for experimentation in preexisting federal rental assistance programs, this article makes an important contribution by examining what variation looks like when flexibility in the design and deployment of such programs isgranted. It also lays necessary groundwork for the evaluation of ERA programs.
Debate is increasing about buy-to-rent investors in housing markets. This article provides a Dutch perspective on this issue. Similar to the United States, the Netherlands has experienced increasing activity of buy-to-rent investors. In response, the government raised the real estate transfer tax for investors and allowed municipalities to ban buy-to-rent investments for much of the housing supply. Although these policies have effectively reduced investor purchases and helped first-time buyers, they have had limited effects on house prices. Most important, research finds that such policies can have significant impacts on which residents end up living in sold properties, with buy-to-rent restrictions reducing the entry of residents with low incomes, often young adults or migrants, in favor of wealthier owner-occupants. The economic effects of such investors ultimately depend on the residents they cater to, which varies between retail and institutional investors across locations and over time. Policymakers should consider this fact when designing policy. Following the financial crisis of 2008, the importance of investors in housing markets has grown significantly, both in the United States and internationally. U.S. Census Bureau (2024) data show that homeownership rates declined from about 69 to 63 percent between 2006 and 2016 and have only recovered to slightly less than 66 percent in recent years. After the crisis, investor activity increased as investors converted existing owner-occupied units to rental units, often following distress sales, and increased the supply of units through new construction or redevelopment projects. The activity of these investors has come under increasing scrutiny. Policymakers in the United States have targeted large investors owning hundreds or thousands of properties. For example, two congressional bills have been introduced to increase taxes on large institutional investors.1Similar legislation has been proposed at the state level, such as in California. A key concern is that the activity of investors drives up housing costs and makes it more difficult for first-time buyers to purchase property. Such concerns are not specific to the United States and have been echoed in other Western countries, such as Canada (August, 2022) and various European countries (Gabor and Kohl, 2022). The Netherlands is one of the countries that have worked to advance regulations regarding housing investors. The Netherlands has passed various regulations to curtail investor activity and benefit first-time homebuyers in the past few years. This article aims to use the Dutch experience to shed new light on the different roles of investors in the housing market, discuss the effects of a Dutch policy that restricted buy-to-rent activity, and explore what U.S. policymakers can learn from the Netherlands' experience. This article largely summarizes the findings of Francke et al. (2025), which evaluate the effect of a ban on buy-to-rent investments. This article first provides an overview of the Dutch housing market, the types of investors active in the market, and the residents they target. This introduction is followed by an overview of various policies the Dutch government has enacted to restrict the activity of investors. The article focuses on the buy-to-rent ban that the Dutch government introduced and the results of the evaluation of this policy by Francke et al. (2025). Of particular importance are the effects of these policies on residents. The article concludes with the implications of these findings for the U.S. policy debate.
The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not represent the official positions or policies of the Office of Policy Development and Research, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or the U.S. Government.
The nonprofit Compass Working Capital is one of the largest administrators of the Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program, a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) program designed to help households in HUD-assisted rental housing make progress toward economic security. A series of program evaluations by Abt Global of FSS programs coadministered by Compass have found positive impacts on participants' earned income and credit outcomes, with the benefits outweighing program costs. This article summarizes and explores the implications of the evaluations and reflects on distinctive features of the Compass FSS model that other FSS programs may benefit from employing. The article also discusses policy implications and areas for future research. Distinctive features of the Compass FSS model that we believe may contribute to its success include a marketing approach that speaks to program participants' aspirations; a client-centered approach to coaching program participants; a focus on early wins, such as improving participants' credit and debt profiles for continued engagement; the adoption of an asset-building lens, using FSS escrow balances to motivate participants to build wealth and achieve their financial goals; a goal of graduating as many households as possible; an ongoing focus on training and supervision for program staff; and ongoing use of data to improve program performance.
This article describes a unique model for administering and implementing the Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program developed by the mission-driven nonprofit organization, Compass Working Capital ("Compass"). Guided by a theory of change that emphasizes asset building and strengthening personal financial practices, Compass has partnered with select public housing authorities and multifamily affordable housing providers to deliver a version of the FSS program that includes access to a personal financial coach for each participant. Since 2010, Compass has been the primary administrator of FSS for more than 5,000 households receiving federal rental housing assistance, and these families have collectively accumulated more than $19,000,000 in FSS escrow savings accounts. Program performance measures-such as enrollment, retention, and graduation rates-and participant outcome indicators, as reflected by changes in earned income, escrowed savings, credit scores, and homeownership, reveal the promise and potential of Compass' financial capability model for the FSS program. Although researchers have more to learn about how and why the Compass Model works, these findings add to a growing body of evidence that well-run FSS programs focusing on asset building and financial capability can support families to build savings, reach their financial goals, and become more financially secure.
This article examines how the Height of Buildings Act influences development patterns in Washington, D.C. First, it establishes that the act is a binding development constraint in central D.C. Second, it illustrates that development in Washington, D.C., is less concentrated and less intense in the city center than it is in the comparable city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Third, it shows that the population density in Washington, D.C., sprawls farther from the city center than does the population in Philadelphia. This article aligns with the prevailing urban economic literature regarding the consequences of building height limits.
This article presents results from a national randomized controlled trial of the Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) flagship initiative to support the economic mobility of households receiving federal housing assistance. This evaluation is the first national assessment of the effects of the FSS program, which the U.S. Congress has funded since the early 1990s and is operated by more than 700 housing agencies. The FSS program offers case coordination, employment and financial education-related services, and an escrow savings account to help participants make progress toward their economic self-sufficiency goals and build long-term savings. Eighteen housing agencies, selected to reflect the contexts in which the program operates, agreed to participate in the evaluation. Combined, these programs enrolled 2,656 households. The mixed-methods evaluation followed study participants for up to 7 years, beyond the full 5-year term of the program for most. It combined administrative records, repeated surveys, and interviews with program staff. The evaluation found that, relative to the control group, the FSS program markedly increased participation in employment services and financial management services but did not produce notable effects on a wide range of hypothesized outcomes. Both program and control groups shared similar trajectories on most outcomes, including employment, earnings, household income, indicators of material well-being, and housing subsidy receipt. Furthermore, only a small proportion of FSS participants in the study graduated and received an escrow disbursement. As a result, a significant majority of those who accrued escrow savings forfeited them. The results from this comprehensive study underscore the need to reimagine the program and strengthen its implementation, so it can serve as a platform to build and boost participants' economic mobility.
MyGoals for Employment Success (MyGoals) is an employment program that combines executive skills coaching with financial incentives to help recipients of government housing subsidies increase their economic mobility and security. It was tested in two housing agencies in Baltimore and Houston as part of a random assignment demonstration. This article describes the MyGoals model and the rationale behind its approach. It also presents emerging findings on the operation and effects of this 3-year program mid-way through participants' enrollment. Those findings show that coaches and participants alike viewed the MyGoals coaching approach more favorably than other forms of case management, and that participants' engagement was steady and sustained. The impact analysis, covering the first 21 months of followup after random assignment, shows that MyGoals had positive effects on participants' goal-setting and attainment skills and their likelihood of participating in education and training programs. However, the program had not affected participants' levels of earnings or economic hardship during that interim period. The article considers how these lessons and future findings can inform program improvement for the Family Self-Sufficiency program.
The adoption of offsite construction techniques offers significant benefits over traditional onsite methods, yet its use remains low in the United States compared with other developed countries. Although previous research has identified various barriers, the effect of regulations and local building codes has been underexplored. This article examines these regulatory challenges in Oklahoma through interviews with building inspectors and contractors involved in offsite construction. Findings reveal that regulatory barriers, practices of authorities having jurisdiction (AHJs), and mindset issues among different stakeholders hinder adoption. Recommendations include leveraging third-party inspectors, standardizing regulations, educating AHJs, fostering collaboration among stakeholders, and studying successful international practices. Addressing the challenges can streamline the code adoption process, ensure safety and quality, and increase offsite construction adoption. This article contributes to a more streamlined regulatory framework for offsite construction practices.
Although the Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program was initially restricted to public housing agencies (PHAs) when Congress created it in the early 1990s, administrative eligibility for the program was expanded in 2015 to owners receiving project-based rental assistance. A first wave of multifamily providers soon began to offer the FSS program to their residents without designated coordinator funding, and in 2023, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded the first grants that multifamily groups could use to help cover the costs of program administration and staffing. This article assesses the experience of the early adopters of the FSS program in the multifamily sector, describes distinct implementation dynamics between multifamily housing owners and PHAs, and presents a set of emerging best practices that can maximize the program's impact. Interviews with staff in multifamily housing organizations administering or considering the FSS program illuminate a set of program challenges and opportunities for effective program administration and future expansion. With concerted support from HUD, Congress, and practitioners, the FSS program can expand its reach and effectively support the integration of a meaningful and accessible asset-building opportunity into the
This study uses building footprints from Microsoft and OpenStreetMap and the Python package momepy to measure the shape, size, and placement of buildings and their 5, 10, and 20 nearest neighbors across the continental United States. Using estimates of building and neighborhood morphology and machine learning, we predict whether each building is a singlewide manufactured home and whether it is in a manufactured home park, informal or manufactured home subdivision, or another setting. We describe the methods used to create these predictions and discuss issues of model performance and their implications for future research, compare our estimates with the locations of manufactured homes documented in the American Community Survey and with government and private registries of these communities, illustrate their distribution nationwide, and present descriptive statistics on their demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. Our findings illustrate that manufactured home parks are more common in Midwestern and Northeastern states, whereas informal or manufactured home subdivisions are more common in Southern and Western states. We find that both neighborhoods are demographically diverse but economically disadvantaged. We conclude by briefly discussing the implications of our research for state and federal housing policy.
This article describes the creation of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program and its evolution over the years through the lens of three of the nation's leading nonprofit community development organizations. The authors describe their respective organizations' roles in the CDBG program and share their vision for its future.
