Amid a national housing affordability crisis and declining federal resources for affordable housing, local governments across the country are taking matters into their own hands. Some are finding new ways to raise revenue to directly support affordable housing development, while others are adopting laws and policies to protect residents from rent increases or evictions.

Local governments are also increasingly recognizing that restrictive zoning and outdated land-use regulations can suppress housing supply, drive up housing costs, and widen racial and economic disparities. Leveraging smart zoning reforms and easing building restrictions can unleash housing supply to help meet the needs of current and future residents.

Many cities are reforming local land-use regulations to build more housing where it is needed most. This involves both building bigger (lifting height or density restrictions) and smaller (finding opportunities to build on smaller parcels of land).

Read the full article about improving house affordability by Solomon Greene and Jorge Gonzalez at Urban Institute.