Could building affordable housing make the surrounding neighborhoods less affordable? That's the finding of a recent research brief from the Urban Institute showing the construction of income-restricted affordable housing units was associated with rising prices for nearby homes.
The Urban Institute brief from April 2022, written by researchers Christina Stacy and Christopher Davis, looked at the impact of 40 developments on home prices in Alexandria, Virginia. The examined projects include both wholly affordable projects—where all units are offered at below-market rates to lower-income renters—and market-rate projects that included some affordable set-aside units.
