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What’s Going On with ARP Infrastructure Investment in North Carolina?

April 18, 2023

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 … Continued

Revisiting the Community Land Trust: An Academic Literature Review

December 9, 2022

Housing costs and supply are dominating the news at the moment.  Housing is the highest monthly bill typical Americans face, reaching an average of $1674 a month in 2021. Housing prices have increased far faster than incomes (Miller 2015), making affordable homeownership inaccessible for many aspiri … Continued

CED and Affordable Housing: How Does Manufactured Housing Fit In?

October 18, 2022

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 … Continued

Local Government Support for Privately Owned Affordable Housing

May 16, 2022

By most accounts, the need for affordable housing across North Carolina is massive. According to 2019 census data, over a million North Carolina households are “cost burdened,” meaning they spend more than 30% of their income on housing. Almost half of those are “severely cost burdened,” meaning the … Continued

What we know about COVID’s impact on affordable housing – so far

January 6, 2022

The economic fallout from COVID-19 magnified many of the existing challenges faced by North Carolina communities such as access to open space or the capacity of the local health care systems. Among these issues, the crisis highlighted how stable and affordable housing is essential to the well-being … Continued

Student Corner: Community Ownership as a Tool for Preservation and Wealth Creation

September 9, 2021

Real estate ownership is one of the primary vehicles for wealth creation in the United States, and consequently one of the core drivers of the racial wealth gap after generations of disinvestment in and displacement of BIPOC communities. Andre Perry, senior fellow at Brookings Institution and author … Continued

Student Corner: The Impacts of Upzoning on Property Values in NC

September 1, 2021

The Brookings Institute recently published an article detailing some of the benefits and drawbacks of the planning practice known as upzoning: the rezoning of a parcel of land from a lower allowable density to a higher one. One of the primary purposes of upzoning is increasing density, both of resid … Continued

Student Corner: Building up the “S”: How Municipalities and Real Estate Developers Can Find Common Ground for Social Equity

August 10, 2021

Sprawled on roughly 40 acres in Charlotte, N.C., The Renaissance is the first Purpose Built Community in the Queen City. Its purpose: be more than a housing option. Developed by Laurel Street Residential in 2016 on behalf of the Charlotte Housing Authority (Now InLivian), The Renaissance offers crad … Continued

American Rescue Plan: Local Government Funding for Affordable Housing Development

June 1, 2021

UPDATE: In July 2022, U.S. Treasury and HUD jointly released an “Affordable Housing How-To Guide” here: https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/Affordable-Housing-How-To-Guide.pdf. Please consult that document in conjunction with the state law information provided below and in charts here and her … Continued

Growing Together: Utilizing Live-Work to Enhance Our Communities

May 18, 2021

Prior to suburban flight, living in urban centers was commonplace, and business owners often lived in their commercial properties. Commonly referred to as live-work units, architect Thomas Dolan defines live-work as “a building, unit, or compound in which residential and work activities are pursued … Continued