Housing is one of the clearest places where our policies subsidize older people and disadvantage young workers and families. Property tax laws like Prop 13 (CA) arbitrarily shift public service costs onto new homeowners and discourage interstate migration. www.nytimes.com/2026/04/21/o...
Just trolled through the schedules on the RPA page. That the southbound ones are so long is particularly unusual. Could it be Long Bridge project causing some of the anomalies? Also, Floridian as the only diesel/diesel through train is 38min south, 45min north is some wicked padding.
I'm very cautious with my optimism here. It's still a crew change point and lots of loading/unloading. I could see the 20 minute layover today turning into 10 or 15 minutes post-Airo. They could reduce it further based on early experience, but expect conservative timetabling at first.
SROs are often the first rung on the housing ladder in any area. But they are too often missing from local housing markets. A model state bill, the ROOM Act, from @ij.org and @legelawyer.bsky.social would give states a tool to overcome local restrictions.
Bird-in-hand, PA?
Usability is important, and one thing I see on my local zoning appeals board with ADUs.
Most ADU applicants will only ever go through this process once or twice in their lives. If we want them to build more housing, making the process straightforward is the least we can do.
In @thehill.com with @rohanaras.bsky.social today where we argue that surface transportation policy is not complete without considering housing. thehill.com/opinion/cong...
30+ states have now adopted policies to boost housing production. Which means exciting opportunities for researchers to study these policies' effectiveness. Some guidance from me, via @niskanencenter.bsky.social, on how to design good state policy evaluations:
www.niskanencenter.org/how-to-evalu...
Really good thread from Addison Del Mastro on the intersection of housing policy and natalism
Long thoughts in today's piece on housing, sex, privacy, and the meaning of "family-friendly housing"
“Man, every time I go 40 thru this school zone I get a photo ticket that I am powerless to avoid.”
Who are these drivers who can’t help but fall for the speed trap that’s always in the same place?
This proves that drivers have agency. Every time they turn the car on, they decide what to do with it. Imposing even light but predictable consequences on misusing vehicles improves safety outcomes.
Some interesting data on DC resident age and gender trends post covid, with millennial-age women leading the exodus and return consistent with their larger share of the District's population.
ora-cfo.dc.gov/blog/populat...
In addition to the cost/benefit of buildable space, locally led preapproved plans allow constructive local input around architecture and other aesthetic concerns, a boost for political buy-in supported by recent research. 7/
For plans developed by nonprofits or higher levels of government, a degree of genericness is baked in to make the plans buildable on a variety of sites and local regulatory environments. This unbuilt sq ft erodes the benefit of preapproved plans that aren’t locally led. 6/
Preapproved plan catalogs offer time and money savings for infill projects. These projects are often the most sensitive to soft costs, particularly outside superstar cities. But these savings come at a cost of unbuilt square feet compared to the maximum under local rules. 5/
Federal policy makers have funded some plan catalog work through the CDBG-PRO grant program, and current legislation would create a competitive grant program to support localities’ preapproved plan catalogs. 4/
California’s AB 1332 requires localities to develop their own preapproved ADU catalogs 3/
Nonprofits like the Michigan Municipal League and Greater Ohio are offering baseline plans and technical assistance to localities who hope to adopt their own preapproved plan catalogs. 2/
Preapproved building plans represent a novel way to lower building costs and speed delivery of infill housing. After recent local leadership, nonprofits, states, and federal policy makers are taking notice. 1/
I'm in the Sun Sentinel, making the case that DeSantis's tax cuts are insufficiently conservative.
www.sun-sentinel.com/2025/12/09/a...
20th Century housing reformers largely banned single room rentals to make their externalities go away. But did so without fully accounting for the unintended consequences.
As a result, it’s now harder to move to a new city and easier to go homeless.
www.richmondfed.org/publications...
Hi Sally, happy to chat about this. Electoral systems are definitely an underappreciated dimension in housing production. Feel free to DM me.
How your city council is elected can suppress housing production by up to 21%.
Cambridge, MA, shows how an at-large city council combined with ranked choice voting can elevate citywide YIMBY coalitions proportionate to their growing support.
commonwealthbeacon.org/opinion/how-...
- Lincoln Mark VII ($500, first car)
- Lincoln Mark VII (5-sp manual swap)
- Mercedes-Benz 240d (4-sp, diesel)
- Chevy Cruze (diesel)
- Mazda Miata (5-sp, 1.6L)
