Citation URL: http://www.urban.org/BarikaWilliams

Over the last decade, the District of Columbia implemented bold steps to improve its public schools while also experiencing population growth, property value increases, and strong city fiscal health. But its child population (0-17 years old) remained essentially the same and a dwindling share of the city's children was attending the public schools. This policy report summarizes analysis from the Quality Schools and Healthy Neighborhoods: Research Report that describes the relationships between education, housing, and neighborhood development in the District, as well as provides policy recommendations for how to make the District of Columbia a more family-friendly city.

Over the last decade, the District of Columbia implemented bold steps to improve its public schools while also experiencing population growth, property value increases, and strong city fiscal health. But its child population (0-17 years old) remained essentially the same and a dwindling share of the city’s children was attending the public schools. This research report describes in-depth the relationships between education, housing, and neighborhood development in the District of Columbia, and it is the basis for the subsequent policy research report, Quality Schools, Healthy Neighborhoods, and the Future of DC, which outlines recommended policies to make the District a more family-friendly city.

This report, commissioned by the D.C. Department of Insurance, Securities, and Banking, examines the extent of subprime lending in the District of Columbia and the resulting impacts on residents and neighborhoods. The study found that subprime lending was concentrated in predominantly African-American, moderate-income neighborhoods, areas that are now experiencing a sharp rise in home foreclosures. The report recommends a number of actions to protect the city's homeowners and neighborhoods, including stronger monitoring of mortgage lenders, better outreach and education for home owners and home buyers, and creation of a loan fund to help persons refinance out of bad loans.

This is the sixth in a series of annual reports about housing in the Washington metropolitan region. It assembles and analyzes the most current data on housing conditions and trends in the District of Columbia and the surrounding suburbs. Last year's report focused on linkages between housing and schools in the District of Columbia and the metropolitan region. This year's report takes a regional perspective, examining how the region addresses housing for special needs populations. More specifically, the report assesses the housing options and services available to the elderly, disabled, and homeless and explores the consequences and opportunities for housing policy across the region.

A booming regional and local economy and constraints on housing production have combined to create unprecedented housing price inflation in the District of Columbia and present added challenges for the city's goal of preserving an "Inclusive City." This report offers a brief summary of the facts that define the new housing market environment in the city and summarizes the main themes of the Comprehensive Housing Strategy Task Force. In it we identify policy instruments other U.S. cities have utilized to respond to the housing market pressures and whether there are any lessons of relevance for the next stages of strategy implementation in the District.

The devastation and displacement of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita poses a unique set of affordable housing challenges. Although everyone who was displaced by the disaster face significant housing challenges, the needs of low- and moderate-income renters warrant far more attention than they have thus far received. Without affordable rental options, many residents will not be able to return to their communities and the region’s economic recovery may be undermined by the lack of critical workers. This report is intended to help inform and invigorate public debate about affordable rental housing policies that would improve the ongoing recovery from the storms.

This report, prepared for the D.C. Department of Housing and Community Development, reviews the state of fair housing in Washington, D.C., identifies impediments to fair housing choice for District residents, and recommends specific actions to remove or reduce those impediments. Based on data analysis and discussions with key informants, the report finds that participants in the city's real estate market are not always aware of, or do not always comply with, fair housing laws. Targeted, direct action and outreach are needed to ensure that the District of Columbia’s housing market is fair to all.

This is the fifth in a series of annual reports that analyzes the most current data on housing conditions and trends in the District of Columbia and the surrounding suburbs. This year's report focuses on linkages between housing and schools in the District of Columbia and the metropolitan region. The availability and quality of public schools play a critical role in shaping demand for housing, and, correspondingly, housing market trends shape school enrollment patterns. To explore these issues, this report reviews trends in housing and public school enrollment in the Washington region, with more in-depth coverage of the District's neighborhoods.

Return to list of authors