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Please note!
This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Do exclusionary zoning rules get in the way of building more affordable housing?

By Jacob Alabab-Moser
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YES

Housing economists say restrictive urban zoning rules limit new housing supply and push up prices. Rules in many cities and suburban towns specify minimum lot sizes, unit sizes and costly building-code requirements as well as limits on anything other than single-family housing. Approval processes slow or stop larger multi-unit projects that promise more affordable options.

Efforts to revise these rules seem to work best with local initiative and support. Minneapolis in 2018 became the first U.S. city to ban single-family-only neighborhoods. A suburban Virginia county has eased restrictions near transit hubs. San Diego, Austin and other cities are speeding up approval processes for affordable projects. A widely-watched bill in California to override local zoning near transit hubs failed in the legislature early in 2020, after vocal objections from southern California residents.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Harvard: Eliminating exclusionary land-use regulations should be the civil rights issue of our time
Mercatus: How land use regulation undermines affordable housing
Urban Affairs Review: Exclusionary zoning—what we can do about it
Urban Institute: How communities are rethinking zoning
Inman: Minneapolis has officially eliminated single-family zoning
KQED: Closely watched California housing bill now dead
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Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.