Publications & Resources

Green Rehabilitation of Multi-family Rental Properties: A Resource Guide is a guide for affordable housing developers looking to make their existing properties greener. A joint project of the Bay Area LISC and California-based Build it Green, the guide aims to help developers and their consultants integrate green building and energy efficiency when upgrading multifamily properties and is intended to be used during energy audits, building walkthroughs, or site assessments of rehab projects. It can be downloaded at www.nhi.org/go/greenguide

Steered Wrong: Brokers, Borrowers, and Subprime Loans, by Keith Ernst, Debbie Bocian, and Wei Li of the Center for Responsible Lending, released in April 2008, looks at the rapid growth of subprime lending. The report is based on 1.7 million mortgages originated between 2004 and 2006. It can be found at www.nhi.org/go/responsiblelending
A new Housing Assistance Council study, Connecting the Dots: A Location Analysis of USDA’s Section 515 Rental Housing and Other Federally Subsidized Rental Properties in Rural Areas, says that counties farthest from urban centers, those with shortages of affordable housing, and those with relatively large minority populations are most likely to have high proportions of U.S. Department of Agriculture Section 515 apartments among their federally assisted rentals. The Section 515 program makes direct loans to developers of affordable multifamily rental housing in rural areas. It can be downloaded at www.nhi.org/go/ruralhomes

NJ and Its Cities: An Agenda for Urban Transformation, the second major report by the Housing Community Development Network of New Jersey on the state’s urban centers and their impact, says that city growth can help restore state economic prosperity. The report, by HCDNNJ executive director Diane Sterner and National Housing Institute senior fellow Alan Mallach, calls for a “fundamental change in the relationship between the state and its cities.” Online at www.nhi.org/go/urbantransformation

Out of Reach 2007-2008, the National Low Income Housing Coalition’s annual report outlining affordable housing needs, studies the growing gap between wages and the cost of rental housing and argues that the two problems share the same root: a national housing policy that has failed to provide and protect safe, decent, affordable housing for millions of Americans. U.S. Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) wrote the study’s preface. Online at www.nhi.org/go/outofreach

The Effects of Inclusionary Zoning on Local Housing Markets: Lessons from the San Francisco, Washington D.C., and Suburban Boston Areas, a study released in March by the Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy and the Center for Housing Policy at New York University, examines inclusionary zoning—the mechanism that links affordable-housing production to market-rate housing production. The report argues that IZ is not “one-size-fits-all” and should be tailored to reflect the local climate. Online at www.nhi.org/go/inclusionaryzoning

Designed for Disease: The Link Between Local Food Environments and Obesity and Diabetes, a collaborative effort by the California Center for Public Health Advocacy, PolicyLink, and the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, identifies the connections between retail food establishments, obesity and diabetes, and community income. “Designed for Disease” reports that the highest rates of obesity and diabetes are in lower-income communities that have poor food environments. Online at www.nhi.org/go/disease

Awards

New Jersey Future, a statewide research and policy group advocating smart growth, held its annual Smart Growth Awards event on June 5 in Newark, N.J. The awards recognize smart growth planning and development throughout the state. For a complete listing of awardees, go to www.nhi.org/go/smartgrowthawards

Events

June 23-26
Housing Credit Conference & Marketplace; National Council of State Housing Agencies; Miami. www.nhi.org/go/miami

July 10
Trenton/Mercer Continuum of Care; Project Homeless Connect. Trenton, N.J. To register, write to jrosado@merceralliance.org

July 17-20
Planning in Challenging Climates, 2008; Planners Network Conference. Winnipeg, Manitoba. www.nhi.org/go/climates