February 5, 2014

Beyond Bricks and Sticks






A weekly digest of current trends in housing and community development. The discussion examines topics from infrastructure to community fabric.

Commentary: Micro Apartments Yield A Big Boom in the Small Space Sector

(RECAP: Being scooped up by young urban singles, service workers, recent grads and retirees on a fixed income, the micro apartment is the epitome of the downsize. Developers say they can't build micro-housing fast enough.)

Are Drive-Thrus Discriminatory?

(RECAP: We've built a physical landscape that often does not acknowledge the existence of people who don't always drive. It may sound silly, but as Americans continue to drive less, issues like this are going to keep coming up.)

Gentrification and Displacement: Not the Relationship You Might Have Thought

(RECAP: The prevailing wisdom is that as a neighborhood gentrifies, long-time, low-income residents are forced to move out because of rising rents, i.e. displacement. Two studies from Columbia University and the Federal Reserve draw different conclusions.)

The New Geography of Apartment Rentals 

(RECAP: According to a study conducted by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies in conjunction with the MacArthur Foundation, participation in the home rental market is at its highest level in more than a decade for all age groups.)

New Trend: Senior Roommates

(RECAP: Four million women age 50-plus live in U.S. households with at least two women older than 50—a statistic that is expected to rise. With an increase in housing costs and a need for companionship, shared housing can be a win-win for many seniors.) 

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