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Residential Housing

Neighborhood Influences on Health
commentary
Pittsburgh's Hill District Is Losing More Than a Supermarket
Tamara Dubowitz @TamaraDubowitz, La'Vette Wagner
Apr 1, 2019
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
When the Shop 'n Save in Pittsburgh's Hill District closed its doors for good, residents lost the ability to go to a supermarket near their homes. But they also lost something less tangible: a symbol of hope, opportunity, and change for their neighborhood.
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Energy Conservation
commentary
Can Innovative Financing by the Public and Private Sectors Build on Momentum in Energy Efficiency Improvements for Affordable Multifamily Housing?
Lisa Jonsson, Aimee E. Curtright @ACurtright
Dec 12, 2018
The Energy Collective
Nearly one in three American households in 2015 reported difficulty paying their energy bills or sustaining adequate home heating and cooling. Emerging models of energy services and financing show promise, and could identify creative ways to increase access to funding that could preserve and improve home affordability for millions of Americans.
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Homelessness
essay
Supportive Housing Reduces Homelessness—and Lowers Health Care Costs by Millions
Jun 27, 2018
Los Angeles County has moved some of its most chronically homeless and vulnerable residents into permanent housing. Providing them with social services and health care has dramatically reduced their use of emergency rooms and other services, saving taxpayers millions of dollars.
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Homelessness
commentary
Housing for Health: Los Angeles County's Department of Health Tackles Homelessness with an Innovative Housing Program That Saves Money
Sarah B. Hunter
Jan 18, 2018
USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism
Los Angeles County's Housing for Health program addresses an important public health issue by providing housing and supportive services to some of the most vulnerable people in our community. The program also saves taxpayers money.
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Insurance
commentary
Why Houstonians Didn't Buy Flood Insurance
Lloyd Dixon, Noreen Clancy
Sep 12, 2017
The RAND Blog
Thousands of Houston-area homeowners will face massive, uninsured losses due to flood damage. Few homeowners buy flood insurance unless they are required to, and it's only mandatory for homes with mortgages located in FEMA-defined high-risk flood zones. People tend to ignore low-probability risks.
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Residential Housing
commentary
Why Rents Have Gone Through the Roof in New Orleans and Across the Nation
Richard K. Green, Heather L. Schwartz, Raphael W. Bostic
Aug 2, 2016
NOLA.com
The rental affordability crisis was caused by declining incomes since 2000, the slowing of new construction, households getting smaller, and the seven million foreclosures during the recession. It is a national problem in need of a national solution.
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Hurricanes
blog
Hurricane Katrina: 10 Years After the Storm
Aug 27, 2015
This weekend marks 10 years since Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast. As the region struggled to cope and rebuild after the storm, RAND experts worked on solutions to the region's long-term challenges.
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Residential Housing
commentary
Community-Driven Development: How the Poor Can Take Charge to Improve Their Housing
Julia Pollak
Sep 19, 2014
The RAND Blog
Public housing projects have been controversial for decades in countries around the world. But an informal settlement in Cape Town, South Africa, could serve as a guide for other countries experimenting with community-driven development, an alternative approach to public housing.
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Developing Countries
commentary
Could Alternatives Ease the Misery of South Africa's Housing Crisis?
Julia Pollak
Jul 10, 2014
The RAND Blog
The government's plan to replace cardboard shacks with cement houses may not be the only route to easing South Africa's housing woes. Increasingly, academic researchers, non-governmental organizations, and private companies are demonstrating pragmatic, low-cost, alternatives.
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Politics and Government
commentary
In South Africa, Hard Choices on Housing
Julia Pollak
May 7, 2014
The RAND Blog
While much has changed in South Africa since the end of apartheid 20 years ago, many challenges remain, including the developing nation's dire need for housing.
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Emergency Preparedness
commentary
Concrete Closets Under Manufactured Homes Could Save Lives
Charles Meade
Feb 23, 2008
Tennessean
Tornado deaths and injuries are the predictable result of poorly conceived construction patterns that threaten to reverse the benefits that have resulted from advanced storm warning and forecasting capabilities, writes Charles Meade.
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