Creating housing opportunities located near jobs, transit, schools and other neighborhood amenities for residents of all incomes is key to building prosperous regions. Strategies can Protect Tenants and Rental Housing; Stabilize and Improve Neighborhoods; Promote Community and Resident Ownership; Leverage Market Activity; Generate Capital; and Expand the Affordable Housing Stock.
Protect Tenants and Rental Housing
Affordable Housing Development 101
Based on a workshop, this is an umbrella tool that introduces advocates to affordable housing strategies and helps them match their goals with appropriate tools.
Expiring Use: Retention of Subsidized Housing
Preserve affordable rental units by protecting subsidized housing units with expiring contracts.
Just Cause Eviction Controls
Implement these laws to protect renters against being unfairly evicted by landlords who want to capitalize on the explosive rental and housing markets.
Rent Controls
Protections to slow the pace of rapidly escalating rental prices.
Stabilize and Improve Neighborhoods
Code Enforcement
Can be an important tool for protecting tenants.
Foreclosed Properties
Use this tool to steer neighborhoods back to sustainable recovery after foreclosure processes are well underway.
Urban Greening
Coming soon!
Transit Oriented Development
How to implement TOD -- compact, mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented communities located around new or existing public transit stations -- in a way that achieves equity goals.
Healthy Food Retailing
Strategies to increase access to retail outlets that sell nutritious, affordable food in underserved low-income urban and rural communities.
Commercial Stabilization
Effective techniques employed by community-based organizations to preserve cultural organizations and longstanding commercial enterprises that define the historic character of communities.
Employer-Assisted Housing
Most EAH programs help employees purchase homes—often near their workplace. They can provide rental assistance or increase the housing in the surrounding community affordable for an employer's workers.
Promote Community and Resident Ownership
CDCs with Resident Shareholders
Offers low-income residents the opportunity to own equity in real estate projects spearheaded by community development corporations (CDCs).
Community Land Trusts
This alternative property ownership model encourages permanent affordability and wealth-building.
Cooperative Ownership Models
Co-op models targeted to low- income residents can offer financial benefits, business skills, and experience in running a democratically- controlled enterprise.
Limited Equity Housing Cooperatives
A partnership in which residents collectively own and control their housing.
Leverage Market Activity
Infill Incentives
Infill incentives can produce new housing units, reduce blight, preserve open space, reduce traffic, and encourage retail development that serves the needs of existing residents.
Developer Exactions
Requires new commercial developments to contribute fees to the development of affordable housing, community services and infrastructure.
Commercial Linkage Strategies
A range of programs and fees that tie economic development to the construction of affordable housing.
Generate Capital
Resident-Owned CDFIs
Resident-owned community financial institutions build assets for low-income residents and provide them with a stronger voice in neighborhood development and revitalization.
Community Reinvestment Act
Congressional mandate that financial institutions help meet credit needs of the communities in which they operate, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.
Housing Trust Funds
Public funds, established by legislation, ordinance or resolution, to receive specific revenues dedicated to affordable housing development.
Expand Affordable Housing Stock
Inclusionary Zoning
Land use regulation mandating a percentage (usually 15-20%) of the housing units in all larger projects be affordable to people of low and moderate incomes.
Community Mapping
Mapping can be used to advocate for community benefits, convey development opportunities, track vacant properties, and more.
Transit Oriented Development
How to implement TOD -- compact, mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented communities located around new or existing public transit stations -- in a way that achieves equity goals.
