In recent years, state and local policymakers have passed legislation aimed at expanding construction of smaller-scale housing types, such as duplexes, fourplexes, and small apartment buildings collectively referred to as “missing middle” housing, as one strategy for tackling the housing shortage. Builders of missing middle housing face unique barriers, as… Read more »

This brief examines the financial feasibility of building missing middle housing, such as duplexes, fourplexes, and ten-unit buildings, in California. Using case study pro formas for missing middle housing projects in four different California markets, the authors find that most are not financially feasible under current market conditions. The paper… Read more »

In 2021, San Diego became the first major city in the country to offer a density incentive for accessory dwelling unit (ADU) projects that include new housing deed-restricted to be affordable to lower- and moderate-income households. San Diego’s ADU Bonus Program goes beyond the requirements of state law to allow… Read more »

Over the last several years, the State of California has undertaken several policy initiatives to spur the creation of missing middle housing, such as overriding local regulatory barriers to the construction of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and the recent passage of bills meant to facilitate the construction of smaller, lower-cost… Read more »

From reforms at the state level in California and Oregon to local changes across the country, there has been significant progress in zoning reforms to enable the construction of more small-scale, missing middle homes often in what were formerly single-family-only neighborhoods. Despite these successes, however, regulatory, financing, and construction barriers… Read more »

  Read the full paper here.   Authors: David Garcia, Policy Director Muhammad Alameldin, Policy Associate Ben Metcalf, Managing Director William Fulton, Terner Fellow   Despite recent zoning reform successes, regulatory, financing, and construction barriers still pose challenges to making missing middle housing, with its benefits for affordability and sustainability,… Read more »

Senate Bill (SB) 9, one of California’s most sweeping zoning reform bills, became law on January 1, 2022. By allowing single-family owners to create up to four housing units on their property, the law effectively ends single-family-only zoning throughout the state. A 2021 Terner Center analysis of this bill estimates… Read more »

A new paper The Landscape of Middle-Income Housing Affordability in California explores the rising housing cost burdens facing middle-income households. The paper identifies policy opportunities for state and local governments to encourage the production of middle-income housing in California by relying on land use, building code, and regulatory reforms. A… Read more »

Authors: David Garcia, Policy Director Shazia Manji, Research Assistant Quinn Underriner, Data Scientist Carolina Reid, Faculty Research Advisor   Read the full paper here.   Image courtesy of Sightline Institute Missing Middle Homes Flickr Library