Federal and State Programs Can’t Fix the Housing Crisis, but Local Action Can

We can’t wait for big government housing programs to fix the housing affordability crisis — in fact, they can actually make things worse. But don't lose hope. Local governments have the power to tackle the housing crisis in ways that actually work.

You Can’t Arrest a Housing Shortage: Why Anti-Homelessness Laws Don’t Work

Criminalizing homelessness is often an attempt to make public spaces safe and comfortable. It fails miserably, at the cost of persecuting some of the most vulnerable members of the population. If cities want a real, sustainable solution to a homelessness crisis, they need to address the underlying cause: North America’s broken housing system.

How To Escape the Housing Trap: A Special Q&A Session

Can your city escape the housing trap simply through blanket rezoning? How should your city handle historic designations that are blocking housing development? Strong Towns President Chuck Marohn answers these questions and more in this episode of the Strong Towns Podcast.

Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsJune 17, 2024podcast, escaping the housing trap, housing crisis, zoning, Incremental Housing

Shortages and Spillovers: How People Misunderstand the Housing Crisis

No city is an island, and no city can judge its place in the housing crisis based solely on local demand. They must also consider how their restrictive policies may be driving housing demand to other places — or how other cities may be driving demand to them.

How Affordable Housing Distracts People From Housing Affordability

Building affordable housing seems like a win for cities struggling in the Housing Trap. But between its top-down nature and the public subsidies it requires, affordable housing can actually make things worse.

How to Escape Housing (and Baseball Stadium) Traps, Plus a Little Disney Urbanism.

The Messy City is a podcast that discusses urban planning and design issues. Its host, Kevin Klinkenberg, recently invited Strong Towns President Chuck Marohn to appear on an episode. Up for discussion: Chuck’s new book, sports stadiums, and Disney World.

Podcast, Top StoryStrong TownsMay 13, 2024podcast, housing, escaping the housing trap, stadium, Disney

Whatever Works (Doing What You Can To Survive the Housing Crisis)

Many cities in the United States are experiencing a housing crisis, with pressure growing for someone to find a solution. But is an official solution even possible? With dysfunctional institutions and a divided culture, the “solution” might come down to individuals doing what they can in the moment.

The Suburban Approach Won’t Help Us Out of the Housing Trap

Connecticut is trying to reform state and local zoning laws to allow diverse and affordable housing production. However, their efforts still rely on the suburban approach — accruing large amounts of debt in anticipation of future growth — so they may be doomed to failure.

Housing Isn’t Meant to Be Affordable

As prices rise, housing affordability has become an increasingly popular topic of discussion across North America. However, in our current system, affordable housing is an oxymoron: Housing is treated as an investment, and good investments constantly increase in price. To escape this paradox, we must change the way we think about housing.

Multidecade Mortgages Are Dumb, and Here Is Why

With interest rates rising, the cost and availability of housing are becoming increasingly popular topics of debate. But most of these discussions fail to challenge the root of the issue: the absurdity of mortgages as an investment vehicle.

To Fix Housing in America’s Expensive Cities, Don’t Emulate the Inexpensive Ones

It's not that cities can’t or shouldn’t learn from each other. But there simply aren’t the kind of drag-and-drop solutions that some pundits (who are either naïve or dishonest) would like to claim.