UCLA Housing Voice

Emily Hamilton, a researcher from the Mercatus Center, dives deep into inclusionary zoning and its effects on affordable housing. She discusses how inclusionary zoning aims to integrate neighborhoods but ironically depends on exclusionary zoning's existence. The conversation highlights challenges in addressing racial and income segregation while evaluating the effectiveness of such policies in cities like D.C. and Baltimore. Hamilton critiques reliance on private solutions for housing and proposes rethinking current strategies to enhance community benefits.

Evan Mast, a researcher focused on the impact of market-rate housing on low-income markets, shares his insights on neighborhood dynamics. He discusses how new developments can ease rent pressures, challenging the notion that they always lead to gentrification. The conversation dives into migration patterns, highlighting how new housing can lead to lower rents elsewhere. Mast emphasizes the importance of accurate rent data and the nuanced effects of these developments on local communities, urging policymakers to consider context in housing initiatives.

Anthony Orlando, a researcher specializing in building height and urban construction expenses, dives into the intricacies of housing affordability. He explains why taller buildings don’t necessarily lead to lower costs and highlights the crucial thresholds where expenses spike. Orlando also discusses the significance of regional building codes and the challenges developers face in multifamily construction. He underscores the need for a shift in urban investment strategies to effectively tackle modern housing issues, showcasing Seattle as a compelling case study.

Jacob Krimmel, a zoning researcher, and economist Maxence Valentin dive into the complexities of upzoning and its effects on affordable housing. They discuss Seattle's Mandatory Housing Affordability program, revealing unintended consequences like rising land values and imbalanced community benefits. The pair highlights the 'grand bargain' concept, emphasizing the need for collaborative housing policies that align developer incentives with public needs. With insights from urban planning, they illustrate the delicate balance required in navigating the dynamics of housing reform.

When the demand for housing rises, which kinds of neighborhoods respond by building more homes, and which just get more expensive? Nathaniel Baum-Snow joins to discuss his research on the different responses of urban, suburban, and exurban neighborhoods, and the many forms “supply” can take.Show notes:Baum-Snow, N., & Han, L. (2024). The Microgeography of Housing Supply. Journal of Political Economy, 132(6), 1897-1946.Alameldin, M., & Karlinsky, S. 2024). Construction Defect Liability in California: How Reform Could Increase Affordable Homeownership Opportunities. UC Berkeley Terner Center for Housing Innovation.Saiz, A. (2010). The Geographic Determinants of Housing Supply. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 125(3), 1253-1296.UCLA Lewis Center research on housing demolition and redevelopment trends in Los Angeles.

We often talk about residential segregation by race or income, but we rarely explore it in the literal sense — as in segregation of residences: of one kind of housing from another. Ann Owens joins to discuss her research on how segregation manifests itself in our built environment in cities and neighborhoods across the U.S.Show notes:Owens, A. (2019). Building inequality: Housing segregation and income segregation. Sociological Science, 6, 497.Rich, P., & Owens, A. (2023). Neighborhood–School structures: A new approach to the joint study of social contexts. Annual review of sociology, 49(1), 297-317.Check out the interactive segregation map and data tool created by Ann and the rest of the Segregation Explorer team.And check out Propinquity, the site created by Andre Comandon and Paavo comparing segregation in cities across a dozen countries.Lens, M. C., & Monkkonen, P. (2016). Do strict land use regulations make metropolitan areas more segregated by income? Journal of the American Planning Association, 82(1), 6-21.Kain, J. F., & Quigley, J. M. (1972). Note on owner's estimate of housing value. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 67(340), 803-806.Andre Comandon’s dissertation, “Ethnoracial Diversification at the Edges of Exclusion.”Owens, A., & Smith, R. B. (2023). Producing affordable housing in higher-opportunity neighborhoods: Incentives in California’s LIHTC program. Journal of Urban Affairs, 1-29.

Black households make up a disproportionate share of rent assistance recipients. Andrew Fenelon discusses how a “two-tiered approach to housing support" favoring white homeowners helped create the disparity.Show notes:Fenelon, A. (2024). Race, housing policy, and the demographic and spatial structure of modern housing programs: Who receives rental assistance and where do they live? Journal of Urban Affairs, 46(5), 944-961.Streets.MN article about the Bryant Avenue Bike Path (with photos).Episode 17 of UCLA Housing Voice, discussing housing vouchers with Rob Collinson.Episode 37 of UCLA Housing Voice, discussing public housing with Akira Drake Rodriguez.Tax Policy Center analysis of the costs of U.S. homeownership assistance programs.

Before the 2000s, French real estate developers were prohibited from building social housing. Today, they build more than half of it. Julie Pollard shares how two seemingly unrelated policies came together to make this rapid shift possible.Show notes:Pollard, J. (2023). The political conditions of the rise of real-estate developers in French housing policies. Environment and Planning C: Politics and Space, 41(2), 274-291.Read about the Clichy-Batignolles eco-district (in English).Episode 20 of UCLA Housing Voice with Magda Maaoui (2022), on France’s social housing production and the SRU Law.Phillips, S. (2024). Lessons from California's Homekey Program: Adding Affordable Housing by Buying Market-Rate Apartment Buildings. UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies.

In this episode, Shane combines insights from a recent trip to Tokyo with official data on housing production, affordability, land use policy, and more.Show notes:Twitter thread of photos and observations during my trip.Episode 16 of the UCLA Housing Voice Podcast with Jiro Yoshida, on Japanese Housing PolicyJapanese population by prefecture.JR East Yamanote Line timetable.Mainichi article on recovering transit ridership on the Yamanote Line.The myth of pedestrian infrastructure in a world of cars, by Joe Cortright in City Observatory.Data on housing starts vs. existing home sales in the US, Japan, and selected other countries – see pg. 137.Report comparing Japanese and United Kingdom homebuilding practices in the early 2000s, by James Barlow and Ritsuko OzakiConstruction Physics articles on Toyota’s prefab homes and Japan’s skyscraper factories.Yoshida, J. (2021). Land scarcity, high construction volume, and distinctive leases characterize Japan’s rental housing markets. Brookings Institution.Suzuki, M., Asami, Y., & Shimizu, C. (2021). Housing rent rigidity under downward pressure: Unit-level longitudinal evidence from Tokyo. Journal of Housing Economics, 52, 101762.Excerpt from Carmageddon: How Cars Make Life Worse and What to Do About It, written by Daniel Knowles and published by Abrams Press.Center for Neighborhood Technology’s Housing + Transportation Index.Iwata, S., & Yamaga, H. (2004). The costs and benefits of tenancy rent control in Tokyo. Institute of Policy and Planning Sciences, Discussion Paper Series, (1081).Guide to Japan’s zoning code.Urban Kchoze blog post on Japanese zoning.Zoning map of Tokyo.

Each year, more money is invested in China's housing market than any other. Lan Deng shares how the market was shaped and the heavy role the government still plays, and what housing in China looks like today.Show notes:Deng, L., & Chen, J. (2019). Market development, state intervention, and the dynamics of new housing investment in China. Journal of Urban Affairs, 41(2), 223-247.Deng, L., Li, S., Zuo, W., & Han, Y. (2024). Housing production and the structural transformation of China’s real estate development industry. Housing Studies, 1-26.News article and video of rail line through apartment building in Chongqing.Monkkonen, P., Deng, G., & Hu, W. (2019). Does developers' ownership structure shape their market behavior? Evidence from state owned enterprises in Chengdu, Sichuan, 2004–2011. Cities, 84, 151-158.UCLA Housing Voice interview with Chua Beng Huat on Singapore’s Public Housing program.