#housing-policy

#housing-policy

Senate Bill 79, one of the more ambitious state-imposed housing density efforts in recent years, is now a final Senate concurrence vote and a Gov. Gavin Newsom signature away from taking effect. The bill was introduced in March by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), who stresses that the state needs to take immediate action to address California's housing shortage. It paves the way for taller, denser housing near transit corridors such as bus stops and train stations:

The State Building and Construction Trades Council, which represents union construction workers, agreed to drop its opposition to Senate Bill 79 in exchange for an amendment that would require some of the projects that make use of the bill to hire union workers. The bill, authored by San Francisco Democratic Sen. Scott Wiener, would be one of the largest state-imposed housing densification efforts in recent memory.

A housing emergency declaration could be in the nation's near future, according to one of President Trump's top cabinet officials. Donald Trump is considering making such a declaration in the fall, Bloomberg reported. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said as much in a comment to the Washington Examiner, a move that would likely raise the profile of the country's housing market as a key point in the 2026 midterm election.

New York is a very different city from when Mayor Ed Koch was faced with upwards of 100,000 properties having been foreclosed on for property tax arrears but current rates of delinquency are on the rise. Multifamily owners are squeezed by limitations on rent increases baked into the 2019 Housing Stability and Protection Act, rising interest rates, and costs for insurance, among other things.

The city will open a new Office of Homelessness Solutions to head Oakland's response to one of its most entrenched issues the thousands of people who live in town without permanent housing. When it opens, the new office will focus on preventing nearly 2,500 people from becoming homeless each year, spending money to rehouse people quickly and build new shelter beds in a city that frequently finds itself short of them.

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

Councils across the country have been running out of funding for the tenant-in-situ scheme, which is designed to keep tenants who are at risk of eviction in their homes. Introduced by the Government in March 2023 as the eviction ban was lifted, the tenant-in-situ scheme enables local authorities and the Housing Agency to buy rental properties where the owner wants to sell up. The tenant then pays rent to either the council or the Housing Agency.

A one-size-fits-all mandate from Sacramento is not safe, and it's not responsible,

The province has approved a plan for Toronto to allow higher and denser buildings near transit stations, which will enable the creation of 1.5 million homes over 25 years.

More than 11,000 households in England have had their homes repossessed by bailiffs following a no-fault eviction process since last year when the Labour government came into power.

San Jose must transition to higher densities thoughtfully, with our residents' voices leading the way, as exemplified by the development on the Pleasant Hills Golf Course.

Thatcher's right-to-buy scheme has cost UK taxpayers almost 200bn and contributed significantly to the housing crisis by reducing the stock of affordable housing.

Our administration is taking an important step toward unlocking thousands of safe, legal homes for New Yorkers. Ancillary dwelling units are a solution to our city's housing crisis that allow homeowners to create new homes for family members or renters while keeping our neighborhoods vibrant and livable.

This is a common sense post.” Pratt misrepresented the content of Senate Bill 549, claiming it would enable L.A. County to push dense reconstruction and bypass local zoning decisions.