Housing

What happens after foreclosures rip through a neighborhood? A look at two Harris County cases

The 2022 State of Housing in Harris County and Houston analyzed foreclosures countywide from 2005 to 2020. But what happens to a neighborhood after a foreclosure crisis?

State of Housing: Houston real estate boom leaves a vulnerable situation in its wake

The past two years have been a heady time for real estate, and as we emerge from the pandemic’s fog of uncertainty, the 2022 State of Housing report details an increasingly stressed situation in Harris County and Houston. Median prices now exceed $300,000 and are approaching $350,000, slipping out of reach for residents earning the median household income. Meanwhile, much of the already limited affordable rental housing stock is becoming increasingly vulnerable.

Home appraisals have long been a source of racial disparity. A new federal effort could change that.

Racial inequities have long plagued the U.S. housing market. Yet only recently has the federal government moved to address one aspect of the real estate industry that continues to exacerbate the racial wealth gap in housing: appraisals.

Efforts to preserve affordable housing must be mindful of transit, quality and flood risk

A recent Kinder Institute report discussed strategies for preserving affordable housing, particularly Harris County’s vast supply of so-called “naturally affordable” units. But knowing which properties should be preserved is a challenge, and the resources committed to preservation tend to be very limited.

With Robins Landing, Habitat for Humanity takes on a new role: master-planned community developer

City officials, home builders and affordable housing developers gathered in northeast Houston this week to celebrate a new model for mixed-income housing.