Houston metro may have set a housing permit record in 2022, but affordability remains elusive
URBAN EDGE : February 13, 2023
New data from the U.S. Census Bureau showed a surge in residential building permits issued in the Houston metropolitan statistical area in 2022, with an estimated total of 75,786. The preliminary numbers place the Houston metro at No. 2 in the country behind Dallas and would be an all-time record, according to Federal Reserve records dating back to 1988. Even with potential increases in supply and continued development, affordability remains a big challenge for renters and would-be homeowners.
In national survey, mayors say real climate change progress may fall on their residents
URBAN EDGE : February 2, 2023
Mayors on both sides of the political aisle have a range of worries on climate change, and found common ground regarding potential solutions in a recent poll by the Boston University Initiative on Cities. While the majority of top city leaders want investment in environmentally friendly municipal vehicles, they also believe that if meaningful climate change progress is to happen, the onus is on “residents to make real sacrifices.”
Fort Bend County found to be among the nation’s most prosperous for immigrants
URBAN EDGE : January 19, 2023
In the past decade, immigrant populations fueled immense population growth in cities and suburbs in particular, according to a new report by the George W. Bush Institute. In the Houston metropolitan area, the report finds that immigrants are thriving best in Fort Bend County, ranked No. 8 in the country, and Brazoria County, ranked No. 15. Harris County was ranked No. 99.
After Census redefines urban and rural, Texas remains steadfastly both
URBAN EDGE : January 5, 2023
The number of people in the U.S. who live in an urban setting has grown by 6.4%, according to new 2020 Census data. But the nation's overall percentage of urban area population was slightly reduced after the U.S. Census Bureau altered the criteria for what is considered an urban or rural area.
With conservation districts, Houston could have a new path to preserve neighborhoods
URBAN EDGE : January 4, 2023
In October 2010, city officials were poised to strengthen Houston’s historic preservation law by adding a provision that, for the first time, would empower the city to forbid the demolition of certain homes in designated historic districts. Preservationists, who referred to the concept as “no means no,” were elated. But during last-minute wrangling over details, a Heights resident named Calvin Simper urged the City Council to reject the whole idea.
More Houston neighborhoods became majority-renter over the past decade
URBAN EDGE : December 5, 2022
The share of renter households in the U.S. has doubled in the past 50 years—a trend that is reshaping how housing is built and distributed across cities and communities. In recent years, Houston has seen considerable growth in renters in a few concentrated areas.
A look at Texas in 2021, the postpandemic year, in five charts
URBAN EDGE : October 6, 2022
The American Community Survey, or ACS, helps track trends between official Census counts. Because it is a more wide-ranging survey than the official Census, it is able to capture an array of details about large populations. The release of some new 2021 data last month provides an opportunity to examine postpandemic shifts in population, housing, transportation and employment.