July 29, 2024
The Real Impact of Zoning and Land Use Reforms Contrary to the Urban Institute’s Claims
Not in my backyard (NIMBY) adherents across the country are beginning to weaponize a recent Urban Institute study that reviewed 180 zoning reforms and concluded these reforms barely affected the housing supply. Given Urban’s wide distribution and the paper’s seemingly comprehensive approach, coupled with the eagerness of NIMBYs to exploit such research, housing supply advocates need to be aware…
February 15, 2024
Harvard (Mis)Leading Housing Study
Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies is back with its annual State of the Nation’s Housing report—and once again it reaches a bleak conclusion based on a loaded and leading question designed to sound an alarm for more federal housing subsidies. Its key metric is what it calls “cost-burdened renters”—those spending more than a third…
September 25, 2023
A Bad Bipartisan Housing Bill: Connecting the Dots on the Helper Act
As rising home prices continue to undermine the American Dream of homeownership for hard-working Americans, Congress is considering a bipartisan bill modeled after the successful VA home loan program, to help first responders and teachers buy a home. However, as long as there is a housing shortage, first-time homebuyer assistance programs, such as the Homes…
July 18, 2023
Yet More Absurdities in Biden’s Housing Policy
In a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, my colleague Ed Pinto and I recently raised alarms about how the Biden administration is doubling down on the same failed policies that preceded the housing crash of 2008. Unfortunately, policymakers keep dreaming up new and equally absurd housing policies. The latest move comes from the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the…