About this tool
This ebook collects a series of policy briefs on how zoning and land use rules limit housing construction, and makes the case for Light Touch Density: small-scale housing such as accessory dwelling units, small-lot and attached houses, and duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes. It matters because it offers a way to add housing in existing neighborhoods where supply is tight and prices are high.
- Shows
- Five chapters cover the history of single-family zoning, the link between land use restrictions and housing costs, the benefits of allowing Light Touch Density, accessory dwelling units, and a case study of two-family zoning in Bergen County, NJ, focused on Palisades Park. It also gives examples from places such as Houston, Oregon, California and Minneapolis.
- Places
- Nation, States, Counties, Cities and towns
Questions it answers
- What is Light Touch Density and what types of housing does it include?
- How many additional homes could Light Touch Density add over the next 20 years?
- How did single-family zoning spread across the United States?
- Which states and cities have passed reforms to allow Light Touch Density?
- What did two-family zoning do for housing supply in Palisades Park, NJ?
Limits
- The ebook's estimate that Light Touch Density could add eight million housing units over 20 years assumes its share of one- to four-unit housing returns to its 1940 level, all else held constant.
- The case study chapter focuses on Bergen County, NJ, and Palisades Park, so its findings come from specific places rather than the whole country.