affordable rental housing
Some cities are pushing for rent control. They’re meeting resistance.
With rents soaring since the COVID-19 pandemic tightened the housing supply, more local governments are considering rent control to keep increases in check and, ideally, protect struggling tenants whose incomes haven’t kept pace. At the same time, some states are enacting measures to prohibit cities from adopting rent control, a policy that has long divided economists and […]
In Biden’s war on junk fees, North Carolina’s senior senator pushes back
In a hot housing market, prospective renters can’t afford to be indecisive. Decide to sleep on it overnight and the property may be snapped up by someone else. But today’s rental market can also place a burden on even the most expeditious renters with application fees, credit checks, move in fees and other “convenience” surcharges. […]
Voters embraced affordable housing initiatives. Advocates say Congress should do the same.
Bond referenda successes in Buncombe County and Charlotte seen as emblematic of growing national support Voters in Colorado approved a statewide affordable housing initiative in November; while voters in nine communities across the country (including two in North Carolina) OK’d measures to finance the construction of affordable housing, preserve existing rental properties and support renters. But as housing costs soar, analysts and advocates say more needs to be done and argue that federal action is needed.
Health risks for families in military private housing probed by U.S. Senate panel
WASHINGTON — A U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs panel on Tuesday grilled officials running private housing for service members about reports of deplorable living conditions from military families. The hearing, led by Chairman Sen. Jon Ossoff, a Georgia Democrat, and top GOP member Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, followed a joint release of a report by the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.
Monday numbers: A closer look at North Carolina’s affordable housing crisis
State and national housing experts say the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic fallout underscore the need for a stronger housing safety net. The National Low Income Housing Coalition recently released its annual report examining the significant gap between wages and the cost of rental housing.
Courts and Law reporter Yanqi Xu discusses North Carolina’s eviction crisis
Read Yanqi’s eviction coverage here, here and here.
NC must act with speed and transparency to distribute rental, utility relief
Last December, as North Carolina was hurtling toward an eviction tsunami, a diverse group of stakeholders met to brainstorm policy interventions. Thankfully, a crisis was temporally averted when Congress passed a second Covid-19 relief bill in late December that provided the states with $25 billion in rental assistance and extended the nationwide eviction moratorium.
Monday numbers: A closer look at North Carolina’s affordable housing crisis
If you struggle to pay your rent or mortgage each month, this next fact won’t surprise you: In no state in the U.S. can a worker who earns the federal minimum wage afford a modest two-bedroom rental home working the standard 40-hour work week.