Public Health

Who owns the single-family rentals and what do we know about them?

A lot of the rent houses owned by real estate investment trusts — or REITs — are located in unincorporated parts of Harris County and municipal utility districts (MUDs) that have been hit hardest by foreclosures and flooding. Many of them are connected to local and national homebuilders.

Disaster preparedness takes more than an infographic

Helping our most vulnerable neighbors weather the toughest storms requires hard work and commitment before, during and after crises strike.

Houston isn’t the best, but it’s one of the greatest, according to the rankings

Posts about where Houston and other Texas metros are ranked on lists of best and worst places for you-name-it routinely perform well on this blog. These lists range from happiest and safest cities to best cities for staycations, foodies and working from home. Today, we’re kicking off a new feature focused on rankings and Houston’s place on them.

Trees battle Houston’s brutal heat, but many poorer areas are left unshaded

Trees provide significant benefits that can be felt both now and in the future, from lowering temperatures, fighting flooding and slowing climate change. But not all Houstonians enjoy the valuable shade and other advantages trees offer in equal measures. A new interactive mapping tool makes it easier to see which neighborhoods are most in need of more trees.

Houston had an overcrowding problem at precisely the wrong time: during a pandemic

COVID-19 killed Black and Brown people at a far higher rate than white or Asian people, and in this year’s State of Housing report, we suggest home overcrowding and labor conditions played a role.