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
With the current housing shortage in California, coupled with recent regulatory changes, multifamily development is robust throughout the state. Perhaps the most consequential recent change is the reform of the California...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
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
When District of Columbia Council Chairman Phil Mendelson introduced the Rebalancing Expectations for Neighbors, Tenants and Landlords (RENTAL) Act, there were high hopes that much needed reform to the Tenant Opportunity to...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Originally enacted in 1970, the objective of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) was to review projects to assess potential impacts on the environment, disclose those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
On June 16, 2025, the San Diego City Council voted 5-4 to cap the number of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) that can be built on single-family lots. The decision reverses the City’s 2020 implementation of a program allowing...more
On May 28, Senate Bill 840 arrived on Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s desk after passing the Texas House and Texas Senate with bipartisan support. Authored by State Senator Bryan Hughes, the bill aims to increase the state’s...more
The UK faces a significant housing crisis due to an acute shortage of homes caused by high capital costs, increasing construction and development expenses, regulatory and political uncertainty, and persistent delays in the...more
This year, over fifty bills were introduced in the Legislature that directly addressed a CEQA issue. Many died in committee, or failed to make it out of their respective houses. The vast majority of those that advanced sought...more
As part of an ongoing effort to address the affordable housing shortage, the Connecticut General Assembly has passed Senate Bill No. 1444 which is designed to facilitate the conversion of certain buildings to residential use....more
On May 29, 2025, the Supreme Court held that the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) — which requires federal agencies to analyze the environmental impacts of projects that they carry out, fund, or approve — does not...more
As of 6 May 2025 Germany has a new government. After intensive coalition negotiations, CDU/CSU and SPD agreed on a joint housing policy in their coalition agreement, combining and developing elements of both manifestos under...more
House Bill 47 ("H47") was signed into law (Session Law 2025-2) by Governor Stein on March 20. The bill's official name is the Disaster Recovery Act of 2025–Part I, but it is more commonly known as the Hurricane Helene...more
California’s drive toward a net-zero carbon economy by 2045 is sparking innovative solutions to harmonize environmental conservation with infrastructure development. Assembly Bill (AB) 550, sponsored by Assembly Member...more
BACKGROUND - The advent of commonhold has been much trumpeted. The government has just published a new white paper, The proposed new commonhold model for homeownership in England and Wales....more
In a show of bipartisan and bicameral unity, California lawmakers on Tuesday unveiled a sweeping 20-bill legislative package aimed at overhauling the state’s housing development process. Branded as the “Fast Track Housing”...more
Commonhold is a form of freehold ownership, where each unit holder owns their own unit (which could be a flat, shop or office unit), and together they own their communal areas through a “commonhold association” - a company...more
BALTIMORE—City Moves Closer to Creating Consumer Protection Agency -The Baltimore City Council advanced a bill to establish its own consumer protection agency, modeled after similar agencies in nearby Howard and Montgomery...more
Last Friday, Massachusetts’ “Unlocking Housing Production Commission,” established by Gov. Maura Healey in October, 2023, released its report titled “Building for Tomorrow.” The report lays out a series of recommendations to...more
Date Issued: Jan. 20, 2025 This executive order directs the heads of all executive departments and agencies to deliver emergency price relief to the American people by pursuing action to reduce the cost of housing,...more
Following Governor Newsom’s recent Executive Order to assist those affected by the devastating wildfires in Los Angeles County, on Monday, LA Mayor Karen Bass issued her own emergency Executive Order designed to expedite the...more
On December 5, 2024, the New York City Council approved the “City of Yes for Housing Opportunity” text amendment, as modified by the City Planning Commission, following recommendations from the Zoning and Franchises...more
So, now is the time to deliver. Among an abundance of new legislation announced in the King’s Speech, we see the legislative beginning of a heavily trailed reform to the planning system with the delivery of high quality...more
National and local news has been replete with stories discussing the challenges and benefits of converting underutilized commercial properties such as office buildings into needed housing. A recently introduced bill pending...more