Housing Policy in the United States

This course will situate housing policy within a historical, economic, and political context. The course is designed to build on fundamentals of first year curriculum requirements in economics and political institutions and provide the background necessary to become informed participants in current debates over the future of U.S. housing policy. The first part of the course covers the overarching context for U.S. housing policy, including housing market dynamics, housing finance, taxation, and racial discrimination. The second part traces the evolution of federal, state and local housing programs, with emphasis given to low-income rental housing. The third part will focus on selected topics, including homelessness, evictions and equitable development practices. Throughout the course we will examine the impact of the pandemic and pandemic-era policies.