Housing and the Urban Plan:

Taking Stock of Housing in Your

Community

An Urban Plan looks into many different aspects of the local housing

situation so that the plan can recommend ways for the community

to maintain and develop the right amount and right types of housing

Keeping up with demand:

Is there enough housing?

One of the basic questions that plans as about the communitys housing situation is whether the community has enough housing to

keep up with demand.

- Current Housing Supplythe Total amount of housing that is currently

available in the community

- Future Housing Supplythe anticipated change in the total size of the

communitys population

Age

Income

Lifestyle preferences

What Kinds of Housing are

available?

1. Different types of housing

Different Types of housing

that are present in the

community

What Kinds of Housing are

available?

2. A mix of owner and renter-occupied

housing

What Kinds of Housing are

available?

3. Housing Costs

A good understanding of the costs of housing in the

community can be used to help plan for a mix of housing

that reflects the income characteristics of the community.

Urban Plans to recommend land use regulations, zoning, other policies

that encourage the development of the right mix of housing

Urban planners Real Estate agents Building developers Local Housing Markets

U.S. Census Property tax Building permit data Property sales data Surveys of housing in specific neighborhoods

This Old House: Housing

Maintenance

Leaky roofs

Peeling paint

Broken windows

Age of Housing

50 years old

Century and more

Communities with significant amounts of older housing tend

to have greater needs for maintenance and upkeep.

Deficient Housing Conditions

Records of building code violations

- can help identity houses that are in poor condition and

neighborhoods where there are significant numbers of poor-

condition houses

Observational surveys or windshield surveys to Assess

housing conditions in specific neighborhoods or districts

Ability of the population to

maintain their housingTime

Money

Effort

may require assistance in maintaining the housing stock.

This includes low income and elderly household.

Keeping an eye directly on housing conditions,

understanding the underlying demographic and

economic characteristics of the community can help

identify households and neighborhoods.

Location, location, location: Is

housing close to where people

work and shop?

Work

Shop

Go to school

Helps urban planners identify future location for new housing or other

land uses, as well as future locations for new housing or other land

uses, as well as future improvements to the transportation system.

Location, location, location: Is

housing close to where people

work and shop?

Housing that is located near other places that people use can provide both

increased convenience for households and have a positive impact on the

environment reducing the amount of travel required to get between places.