It is not uncommon for charitable housing organizations, such as Habitat for Humanity, to request land from local governments with the intent of developing housing on the property and then selling it to low- and moderate-income homebuyers. Unfortunately, North Carolina local governments sometimes co … Read more

North Carolina property tax law, nicknamed the Machinery Act, contains many dozens of full or partial exemptions for property as diverse as free drug samples, uranium 233, and Loyal Order of the Moose clubhouses. This blog post attempts to identify which of these property tax breaks that might be re … Read more

This blog post is part of a regular series that reports recent trends in private real estate financing. These posts are meant to inform local governments about current conditions facing private developers and development projects in their communities. Lending for real estate development projects Las … Read more

This blog post is the first in a regular series aimed at informing local government partners about current conditions facing private developers and development projects in their communities. Lending for real estate development projects: interest rates & tighter lending standards In 2022, the Fed … Read more

State law requires North Carolina counties to administer and provide a number of social services and public assistance programs described in Chapter 108A of the North Carolina General Statutes, including (among others) Work First, Food and Nutrition Services, Medicaid, child protective services, ado … Read more

North Carolina suffers from a lack of affordable housing options for low and moderate income households.  And as my colleague Tyler Mulligan has noted, the public sector cannot be expected to solve this problem without private sector capital and expertise. In a May 2022 post, Tyler outlined many of … Read more

Almost 15 years ago, a brief CED blog post highlighted several resources for supporting or attracting local grocery stores, especially ones in rural areas.  Much more recently, a CED post highlighted the various ways CED professionals interact with food systems overall. This post brings North Caroli … Read more

A significant benefit of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) for North Carolina CED professionals is the availability of funding for investment in water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure though the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRS). Where and how is that local govern … Read more

In the past year, activity around local food systems increased dramatically. Government has been involved in supporting food systems for decades, but primarily through programs adopted at the federal level to both promote food production and protect the health of consumers. But having government wor … Read more

This headline from last week would naturally grab the attention of any CED professional: “Affordable mobile homes are disappearing in Asheville; code change could bring some back.” Housing is a basic issue for anyone interested in CED. Behind the headline are a host of issues that both foster hope i … Read more