Welcoming Neighbors Network

Senate Moves Toward Passing Sweeping Housing Bill, but Challenges Lie Ahead

Not a perfect package, but there's a lot to be excited about in the ROAD to Housing bill moving forward in the US Senate.

It's a reminder of how unusually bipartisan pro-housing policy is. Elizabeth Warren, Tim Scott, and the Trump White House?

Nothing else like it. 🤝

Guest commentary: Boise built something better. Let's keep going In 2023, Boise did something most cities only talk about: we rewrote the rules.

Lots of hard work by Neighbors for Boise went into this win 🙌

Read more about what they're celebrating ⬇️

BOISE with a BIG win!!! Last night, the city greenlit more duplexes, townhomes, and starter homes across the map 🗺️

This is how you build a city for everyone ❤️

Parking Reform — Commonwealth Housing Coalition What are parking mandates?

HB 888 limits parking mandates for new homes built within one-half mile of transit, revitalization areas, and mixed-use development areas.

Read more about it here ⬇️

VIRGINIA!!! A MAJOR parking reform bill just cleared both chambers 🏛️🏛️ and heads to the Governor's desk! ✍️

People > parking. Always. Let's finish the job!

New housing coalition calls on state to streamline permitting, reduce regulatory barriers A new coalition, Build Homes Build Community, is advocating for lawmakers to streamline state permitting for new housing projects, and remove regulatory barriers.

Housing problem 🟰 workforce problem

Excited to see Build Homes Build Community advocate for common-sense solutions to both!

Missing in the middle of WA's middle housing: Elevators A bill still in play in the Washington Legislature would make elevators easier and less expensive to install in "middle housing" developments.

Smaller elevators ➡️ bigger opportunities for accessible, affordable homes.

Flathead Co. survey shows residents concerned about housing A new survey of more than 600 Flathead County voters suggests many residents view housing affordability and availability as a growing crisis, particularly among

📊 Polling shows Flathead County voters are ready for more homes and local shops in existing neighborhoods.

The path to livable, affordable communities is clear.

Congratulations to @texansforhousing.bsky.social Executive Director @cityjane.bsky.social ! So well deserved!

📢 Huge shoutout to @betterdcregion.bsky.social!

The organizing power to keep showing up at these hearings and make your voices heard is what helps our movement win! 🌟

Poll finds statewide housing crisis at a breaking point A new statewide poll of Vermont voters finds housing affordability and availability have reached a breaking point.

New polling from Let's Build Homes confirms it: VT voters want the state to make it easier to build homes that more people can afford! 🛠️🏘️

'Co-living' is catching on in Connecticut. Here's the latest on a hot affordable lifestyle Co-living apartments are expanding in CT, from UConn Storrs to the Thread City Crossing Bridge, also known as the Frog Bridge, in Willimantic.

Great to see @prohomesct.bsky.social testifying this week for the "Golden Girls" bill to unlock this home choice for more CT residents!

📢 Good news in CO!

The HOME Act—which will allow non-profits, schools, and transit districts to build affordable housing on their land—was approved in committee and now heads to the Senate floor.

One step closer to more home choices for all Coloradans 🏁

Meet The Hill’s Top Women Shaping Policy The Hill is recognizing 50 women as part of its inaugural Top Women Shaping Policy, a group who help to steer the agenda in Washington and ...

Thrilled to see so many housing advocates on this list!

Special shoutout to WNN member leader Felicity Maxwell (with @texansforhousing.bsky.social) for making The Hill’s Top Women Shaping Policy list! A well-deserved honor ✨

Incredible to see this kind of energy! Off to a great start, @moreneighbors.org 🎉

NYC’s Housing Ballot Measures Appear to Be Working as YIMBYs Intended A residential housing project in Bayside, Queens, is winning the support of housing-skeptical Councilmember Vickie Paladino due the threat of a new voter-approved appeals process that could override…

Voters spoke, and the era of "member deference" is out. NYC is trading vetoes for actual housing progress. 🏗️🗽

These major issues have brought together Democrats and Republicans in states Across the country, Republicans and Democrats have found bipartisan agreement on regulating artificial intelligence and data centers. But it's not just big tech aligning the two parties.

In these polarized times, Democrats and Republicans find common ground on housing.

Study: LA Could Get Rid of Almost Half its Pavement Researchers say nearly half of the county’s paved surfaces could be redesigned to cool neighborhoods, manage stormwater, and improve public health.

Recent data gives us an excuse to shout it again: parking reform is a key tool for turning over-paved cities into thriving, resilient communities. 🌳

🚨 BREAKING 🚨

VA just took one HUGE step closer to winning two big zoning reforms. The House Committee passed:

✅ SB 531: Legalize ADUs anywhere with existing homes
✅ SB 454: Allow more homes to be built in commercial areas

Both bills are now headed to the House floor for a vote 🗳️ Let's go, VA!!

Boise approved nearly 2,000 new infill homes- BoiseDev Nearly 2,000 new housing units were approved in Boise last year, with more than half of them popping up in the city’s densest areas. New data from last year presented to the Boise City Council shows…

Boise's updated zoning code is working! Proud to see our member Neighbors for Boise pushing to fine-tune those changes and bring starter homes to every neighborhood. 🏘️

Column | Your backyard could be a home. Here’s how to build one. Accessory dwelling units are booming. Here’s a guide on whether it’s right for you.

What's the best way to know if ADUs are right for a home? 🧐

Give homeowners the flexibility to decide.

Assessing the Cost of Impact Fees on Affordable Housing: An Analysis of Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Projects in California - Terner Center Building new affordable housing in California has always been complex, but costs have risen significantly in recent years. This Terner Center research brief looks at a key cost contributor: local…

CA: "We desperately need affordable housing!"
Also CA: "That’ll be $300M in fees per year, please." 💸

Terner Center research looks at the math of impact fees and how local governments can get affordable housing built.

Major milestone! ✨

Applauding @ggwash.org on a strong hearing yesterday for a bill they co-wrote this session in MD. The Bring Back Main Street Act turns vacant offices & malls into vibrant homes close to the things that matter.

From Neighborhood Defender to Housing Advocate - Flathead Beacon Whitefish neighborhood defender, that is what I used to think of myself. When I served on city council in from 2004-2007, I believed my role was to protect neighborhoods, and the people I considered…

It's never too late to support pro-housing policy! Here's what changed this neighborhood defender's mind ⬇️

‘Holding us back’: Mass. weighs ending old fire safety rule to build more housing State building code now requires two staircases in buildings of a certain size. The new rule would drop it to one.

In TN, MT, CT, and now MA, a legislative wave is building: single-stair reform would unlock safe, affordable multifamily housing. 🌊

A new home at the top triggers a vacancy chain, letting everyone trade up for a better fit. 🔗✨

Our churches are being priced out of Virginia. Lawmakers could help them survive. • Virginia Mercury It is our sincere hope that Virginia lawmakers will invest in housing solutions to meet the dire needs of our congregants and residents statewide, guest columnists Rev. Dr. Keith Savage and Rev. Dr.…

When you ban affordable homes, you don't just lose "units;" you dismantle generations of community and history.

VA's faith-based organizations are ready to prevent this by building homes on the land they own. Now, the state just needs to let them. ⚒️

Thousands of apartments set to take over empty office buildings with new L.A. ordinance New L.A. ordinance makes it easier to convert office buildings to housing

LA unlocked thousands of potential homes by streamlining office-to-housing conversions. 🏢➡️🏠

With 50 MILLION sq. ft. of empty office space, this is a big opportunity to create homes in thriving communities close to the jobs and amenities.

The Research All Points in the Same Direction: Adding More Homes Curbs Rents for Low-Income Tenants - Metropolitan Abundance Project The Center on Poverty and Inequality at Georgetown Law made a surprising and contrarian argument in a new paper: adding more homes does not benefit low-income tenants. Three recent separate analyses…

TL;DR: Adding housing actually cuts costs for those who need it most. 📉

Didn't think we needed it, but still grateful for the solid data (again).

Columbus Churches Get Blessing to Turn Parking Lots Into Homes Council approves 'Yes In God's Backyard' pilot to speed church-built affordable housing.

Big news for Columbus! 🎉

🚦The "Yes In God’s Backyard" pilot just got the green light. Let’s get building!