SBR-Authors Podcast: Finding True Happiness Through Acts of Kindness: A Conversation with Karen Olson
Creative Housing Solutions Pop Up Across Oregon
Affordable Housing on the Front Range: Inclusionary Housing Ordinances and the New Middle Income Housing Authority
Office-to-Apartment Conversions – A Good Idea, but Tricky to Pull Off (Audio)
Episode 15 | Hot! Hot! Hot! Don't get Burned by the Perils of Buying and Selling Residential Real Estate
California CRE to Expand in 2022
2025 saw a number of Growth Management Act (GMA) and housing related bills in Washington, which are particularly relevant as planning counties and cities are in the middle of preparing their comprehensive plan updates and as...more
As discussed in our earlier post, California's CEQA landscape has rapidly, and potentially seismically, evolved with the passage of AB 130 and SB 131. This post focuses on the immediate creation of a new statutory exemption,...more
Assembly Bill (AB) 130 and Senate Bill (SB) 131, which became effective on June 30, 2025, are designed to bring sweeping change to California housing and infrastructure development across the state. Key provisions in the...more
Note: This is the second update in our series covering AB 130 and SB 131, two bills that work substantive changes to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and California housing law....more
Texas House Bill 21 (HB 21), signed into law in May, has dramatically shifted affordable housing tax exemptions across the state. Specifically, HB 21’s primary impact is on a housing finance corporation’s area of operation...more
In its 89th Regular Session, the Texas Legislature enacted House Bill 21 (HB 21), introducing significant reforms to the way housing finance corporations (HFCs) own and operate multifamily affordable housing developments....more
On June 30, 2025, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed two budget trailer bills—AB 130 and SB 131—that together work major changes both to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and California housing law. Because these bills...more
Originally enacted in 1970, the objective of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) was to review projects to assess potential impacts on the environment, disclose those impacts to the public, and mitigate those...more
Single-family-only zoning has officially ended in the City of Seattle. On May 27, 2025, the Seattle City Council passed CB 120969 to comply with RCW 36.70A.635, which requires adoption of development regulations allowing for...more
On July 3, 2025, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Senate’s version of the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act, which contains provisions impacting the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC), opportunity zones (OZs) and...more
On June 30, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed two budget bills that contained the most significant reforms to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) in decades, effective immediately. These changes create an...more
On June 30, 2025, Governor Newsom signed into law a sweeping set of housing and infrastructure reforms as part of the 2025–2026 State Budget, marking one of the most significant overhauls of the California Environmental...more
On 18 June 2025, the German Federal Cabinet adopted a draft law to accelerate residential construction and secure housing (Schneller bauen mit dem Wohnungsbau-Turbo | Bundesregierung) in order to implement the 100-day target...more
A roundup of news and multimedia from the Unfamiliar Terrain team: San Francisco - Mayor Lurie names new S.F. planning director (SF Chronicle): Sarah Dennis Phillips has been named the City’s planning director,...more
Effective July 1, 2025, the realty transfer tax rate for properties or acquired real estate companies sold in the City and County of Philadelphia will increase to 3.578%, in addition to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania realty...more
California stands at a pivotal juncture in 2025, confronting an array of environmental and housing challenges. As usual, the California State Legislature is considering numerous strategies to address these issues. This year’s...more
City Council Passes FY26 Budget, HOME Bills- During their final meeting before summer recess, the City Council passed a staggering 58 bills, including the FY26 Capital and Operating Budgets, business and wage tax cuts, and...more
Deep in the 1,100 pages of the “big, beautiful bill” is a plan to retool and extend one of the big policies from the first Trump administration: Opportunity Zones. Under this tax incentive program, investors defer capital...more
On June 4, 2025, the Prince William County Board of Supervisors approved a new Affordable Dwelling Unit Ordinance that becomes effective on Dec. 1, 2025. The ordinance, adopted under the authority of Virginia Code...more
On the evening of Thursday, June 5, the Philadelphia City Council granted preliminary approval to several bills related to Mayor Cherelle Parker’s $6.8 billion FY26 City Budget with minimal changes to the initial proposal,...more
FY26 Budget Negotiations Entering HOME Stretch - Thursday marks the final opportunity for the City Council to advance bills—including those tied to Mayor Cherelle Parker’s $6.7 billion proposed budget and Housing...more
After 18 months of stakeholder meetings with local governments, real estate developers and consumer advocates, the Colorado Task Force to Study Corporate Housing Ownership is expected to release a report later this month...more
Mayor Parker Signs POWER Act Into Law - On Wednesday, Mayor Cherelle Parker signed the POWER Act into law, expanding protections for City workers by increasing penalties for employer retaliation, extending sick leave to...more
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul recently signed into law the Affordable Housing Retention Act (AHRA), which for the next four years enables condo conversions of specific buildings in New York City with a presale requirement for...more
New York State legislators passed the $254B Fiscal Year 2026 state budget, reflecting an increase of $17B from FY25. The FY26 budget included inflation refund checks (up to $200 for individuals and $400 for families), an...more