Shelterforce

In recent years, Los Angeles and Seattle voters have approved major taxes to boost affordable housing using a “social housing” approach. But they offer two very different visions of what that means. Shelterforce's Steve Dubb reports. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/31/can-social-housing-deliver-los-angeles-and-seattle-pursue-two-distinct-paths/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio

An Ithaca landlord argued that source-of-income discrimination laws force them to consent to government searches, and courts agreed twice. The reasoning has since surfaced in a dozen cases across the country. Reporting by Roshan Abraham; read by John Ludas. Read the full story at shelterforce.org/2026/09/03/will-new-yorks-source-of-income-protections-survive-legal-challenges/

Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens's $5 billion-plus Neighborhood Reinvestment Initiative aims to reduce inequity between the city's neighborhoods, and even has a proactive anti-displacement plan. But its financing method might not get the needed buy-in. Sean Keenan reports for Shelterforce. Music by ℗ ComaStudio

The federal housing bill passed in July marks a major step forward in federal recognition of and support for community land trusts and other forms of shared-equity housing. But implementing these provisions is critical if the promised benefits are to be realized. Tiana Patterson reads the piece, which Patterson co-authored with Doug Ryan. Read it at: https://shelterforce.org/2026/09/04/housing-bil...

More than 440,000 federally assisted homes will lose subsidies or rent restrictions before 2030. Those expirations don’t automatically mean the homes will be lost, but many deadlines are arriving as aging buildings and rising costs make keeping them affordable increasingly difficult. Shelterforce's Shelby R. King reports. Music by ℗ ComaStudio

Businesses owned by immigrants, including green card holders, have been deemed ineligible for federal Small Business Administration loan support. Commercial corridors across the country are already feeling the effects of this ill-conceived policy change. Anju Chopra, director of policy at National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development, explains. Read the story at https://shelt...

For decades, a national network of more than 4,000 HUD-certified housing counselors has helped families, renters, and homebuyers make ends meet. A change in the rules announced in the latest department funding notice puts this system at risk. Cristy Villalobos-Hauser, a housing policy advisor at UnidosUS, explains. Read the story here: https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/26/hud-funding-notice-upends-...

In intentional intergenerational communities, older adults mentor, babysit, and lend a hand, while younger neighbors provide companionship and household support. But the housing model remains rare. Jill Webb reports for Shelterforce. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/26/what-happens-when-a-community-is-designed-to-bring-generations-together/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio

In metro Charlotte, North Carolina, a $225 million fund backed by local business leaders aims to expand affordable housing by acquiring and improving existing properties. Amanda Abrams reports for Shelterforce. Read the story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/25/can-a-private-sector-fund-preserve-affordable-housing-in-charlotte/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio

Early childhood education is a fast-growing but low-paying profession. In response, one New Haven, Connecticut, center has started offering rent-free housing to its educators. Stephanie Lam reports for Shelterforce. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/20/to-keep-childcare-affordable-this-center-offers-care-workers-free-housing/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio

In Portland, Oregon, social housing has followed a stop-and-go trajectory. A one-time windfall has let the city pilot a revolving loan fund to acquire property that can support permanently affordable housing. But can Portlanders develop a long-term social housing policy? Wesley Vaughan reports for Shelterforce. Read the story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/21/portlands-struggle-to-advance-soc...

In recent years, the Democratic Socialists of America, both nationally and in many chapters, have committed to housing organizing, contributing to the rise of tenant unions while also altering their own organizations. Shelterforce's Steve Dubb reports. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/12/can-tenant-organizing-build-political-power-the-dsa-experience/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio

The Federal Home Loan Bank system was formed in 1932 to support mortgage lending that would make housing more affordable. But when the savings and loan system fell apart in 1989, the system veered away from this mission. It is time to reset it. Dawne Troupe, the advocacy director for the People & Places Collaborative, explains. Music by ℗ ComaStudio

Naturally occurring retirement communities, or NORCs, happen when residents live in the same place for decades. In some places, supportive service programs help older people get the health care they need. Shelterforce's Steve Dubb reports. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/18/when-a-community-grows-old-together/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio

Chicago funded affordable housing for years without verifying or tracking its accessibility. Disabled residents paid the price—and after a recent settlement, the city will have to as well. Shelterforce's Re'Dreyona Walker reports. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/06/courts-to-city-housing-depts-pay-for-accessibility-up-front-or-pay-more-later/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio

How can impact investing be an effective affordable housing partner? CDFI leaders and affordable housing providers point to the importance of redefining risk so that returns to communities are at least as important as returns to investors. Speakers include: —Betty Francisco, CEO of Boston Impact Initiative —Kate Khatib, co-executive director of Seed Commons, —Shelby King, Shelterforce's investigat...

Elders are turning personal housing struggles into collective action, and challenging assumptions about who leads housing justice movements. Shelterforce's Sandra Larson reports. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/13/older-adults-are-fighting-for-housing-justice-and-they-refuse-to-be-pushed-aside/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio

The roots of housing insecurity can be traced back decades to discriminatory policies and practices that have deprived Black seniors of the wealth that often provides stability in old age. Reporting by Amanda Abrams, a freelance reporter for Shelterforce. Read by John Ludas, an audio producer for Shelterforce. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/11/for-older-black-homeowners-a-...

Mondragón Cooperative Corporation, based in Spain, is a 70,000-member worker cooperative network. In May, it sent three representatives to the U.S. as part of an effort to build an international alliance of like-minded “social economy” enterprises. Shelterforce's Steve Dubb reports. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/29/worlds-largest-worker-cooperative-network-seeks-new-allie...

Federal accessibility requirements are only as effective as the local governments responsible for enforcing them. Michael Allen, a disability rights attorney, reflects on cases in Chicago and Los Angeles, and why they should serve as a warning to cities nationwide. Music by ℗ ComaStudio Read the story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/05/the-accessibility-rules-were-there-the-enforcement-wasnt/...

Aging safely in rural communities depends on a fragile interconnected network of housing, healthcare, transportation, and local support. Shelterforce's Franklin Schneider reports. Read the story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/04/the-wobbly-infrastructure-behind-aging-in-rural-communities/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio

Private equity firms are major players in the rental housing market. Here's how private equity ownership works, how it harms tenants, and the organizing strategies and policy responses that could help. This piece is read by Caroline Nagy, the associate director of housing policy at Americans for Financial Reform (AFR). Nagy co-wrote this piece with her AFR colleague Aditi Sen. Read the full piece...

Seniors have long been more likely to own than rent. But the number of older renters is growing, and they’re especially vulnerable to rising housing costs, inaccessible buildings, weak tenant protections, and homelessness. Here’s why the stakes are higher later in life. Shelterforce's Frances Nguyen reports. Music by ℗ ComaStudio Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/30/for-older...

Older homeowners often fall into a Catch-22: too much home equity to qualify for aid, but too little income to comfortably live in their homes. Some housing models aim to bridge that gap. Franklin Schneider reports for Shelterforce. Music by ℗ ComaStudio

In 2019 and 2023, Oregon passed two laws requiring city housing plans to affirmatively further fair housing. But rather than using maps to inform policy, many Oregon cities are refraining from mapping to avoid confronting patterns of segregated housing. Jennifer Bragar, president of Housing Land Advocates, explains. Bragar co-wrote this piece with John Miller, executive director of Fair Housing Co...