In Lafayette, Louisiana, homelessness and the lack of affordable housing are creating strain, prompting NIMBYism among community members and leaving civic leaders uncertain of a clear path forward. Understanding this challenge and the tension it can create throughout a city, ULI members gathered community members and leaders to dig into the difficult challenge of housing the city’s unhoused and most vulnerable residents. Supported by the ULI Homeless to Housed (H2H) grant initiative, Catholic Charities of Acadiana in Lafayette and ULI Louisiana gathered more than 300 residents for a series of community workshops to better understand the challenge and to outline pathways toward more deeply affordable housing and services for people most in need.

Estimates suggest that, on any given night, almost 800 individuals are unsheltered, and more than 3,700 are living in emergency or transitional housing in Philadelphia. Homelessness can often be connected to difficulties in finding affordable housing.

With insights and research from a ULI Technical Advisory Panel and ULI’s Terwilliger Center, the Austin Housing Conservancy fund, a revolutionary approach to preserving workforce housing, was born. Now known as the Texas Housing Conservancy, the fund became the nation’s first to combine a nonprofit investment manager, Affordable Central Texas, with an open-end private equity fund.

As we approach Election Day on November 5, issues such as the shortage of affordable housing and climate change are top of mind for many voters. When it comes to the cost of living, an unprecedented increase in home prices and surging rent are affecting both renters and homeowners. Adaptive reuse, particularly in urban areas, must be considered as a solution to mitigate these pressing matters, especially in an older city such as St. Louis, Missouri, which was founded in 1764.

A $3.6 billion commitment to create or preserve 35,000-plus affordable homes

President Biden’s administration aims to speed up historic building reviews.

The city of Baltimore has approximately 13,000 abandoned houses and 20,000 vacant lots that create health, safety, and financial hazards for nearby properties. Although it might seem simple to fix and flip these homes, the math doesn’t easily compute.

In an era when the demand for attainable housing continues to outpace supply, sustainable workforce housing is a necessary and prudent investment decision based on three key market trends. Primarily, the demand for attainable housing is growing. Workforce rental housing is increasingly sought after, particularly given dwindling affordability and growing barriers to home ownership. Last but not least, generational demand contributes to the rise of sustainable multifamily housing.

Divyabahen grew up in Ramapir No Tekro, an area of Ahmedabad in northwest India. Labeled a “slum,” it sits on land formally owned by the city. After getting married, Divyabahen lived with her husband’s family for a short time before they looked for a place of their own. Unable to afford to rent or buy a home, they built a small house on public land along a creek near Divayabahen’s childhood home. They enjoyed living under the large shade trees, with space around them and extended family nearby.

The 2024 Terwilliger Center Home Attainability Index (HAI) features a full set of interactive data visualization tools that can help ULI members unpack housing challenges nationwide and specifically for their locale.