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Neighborhood revitalization and stabilization - Publications
Perspectives from Main Street: The Impact of COVID-19 on Communities and the Entities Serving Them
This report provides insight into the scope and scale of challenges that U.S. communities are facing amid the COVID-19 pandemic. It summarizes the findings of a nationwide survey of nonprofit organizations, financial institutions, government agencies, and other community organizations. The survey was conducted in early April by the 12 Federal Reserve Banks and the Board of Governors. It saw nearly 3,900 respondents serving urban, suburban, and rural communities.
posted 05/18/2020 by Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Richmond, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Dallas, San Francisco, Board of Governors
Building Entrepreneurship Ecosystems in Communities of Color
Entrepreneurship ecosystems leverage the resources of local communities to support entrepreneurs as they start and scale high-growth companies. This guide gives ecosystem builders an overview of key concepts and recommendations on how to develop high-growth entrepreneurship in communities of color.
posted 12/10/2019 by Kansas City
Disconnected: Seven lessons on fixing the digital divide
The report from the Kansas City Fed focuses on broadband access, economic impact and success stories for communities wishing to narrow the digital divide. The digital divide refers to the gap between those with and without access to affordable, reliable broadband and the skills and equipment to utilize it.
posted 08/01/2019 by Kansas City
Weathering the Storm
This new publication from the Dallas Fed explores recovery efforts in the wake of recent natural disasters across the United States. It presents guidance on how financial institutions can help advance disaster recovery in low- and moderate-income communities and meet their obligations under the Community Reinvestment Act.
posted 08/14/2018 by Dallas
Home Lending in Hamilton County Neighborhoods
A Cleveland Fed researcher used Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) to examine trends in mortgage lending in Hamilton County, Ohio--home to Cincinnati--during a 27-year period beginning in 1990.
posted 06/08/2018 by Cleveland
Home Lending in Franklin County Neighborhoods
A Cleveland Fed Policy Analyst used Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) to examine trends in mortgage lending in Franklin County, Ohio--home to Columbus--during a 27-year period beginning in 1990.
posted 06/08/2018 by Cleveland
Investing in Coal Country
The Central Appalachian region is currently experiencing an economic transition. This Cleveland Fed blog entry looks at how philanthropic organizations are working to overcome the region’s challenges by capitalizing on its natural assets.
posted 06/08/2018 by Cleveland
Reflections on Discriminatory Lending: Past and Present
The Fair Housing Act is fifty years old and despite some progress made during those years on the housing front, challenges remain. The Cleveland Fed attended a panel discussion assessing its impact and those challenges.
posted 06/08/2018 by Cleveland
Unemployment, Vacant Properties, Population Decline: Finding Solutions in Dayton
The Cleveland Fed toured Dayton, Ohio and heard from people who raised shared challenges: employers unable to fill jobs, vacant and abandoned housing, and population loss. What are people attempting to do to turn things around, and what’s working?
posted 06/08/2018 by Cleveland
Bridges — Winter 2017-2018
Bridges is a quarterly review of regional community and economic development issues, projects, and regulatory changes for practitioners from community-based organizations, as well as for CRA officers, academics, and government officials that work in the Eighth Federal Reserve District. Feature articles in the Winter 2017-2018 issue include: New St. Louis Fed Tool Dives Deep into Community Investment; Cash on Hand Is Critical for Avoiding Hardship; Connecting a Memphis Community to the Built Environment through Equity; Investment Connection: The St. Louis Fed’s New Approach to CRA; CRA: An Examiner’s Perspective – Questions to Ask Workforce Development Partners; and more.
posted 03/20/2018 by St. Louis
Seizing the Opportunity for Equitable Redevelopment
Nearly 10 years have passed since Hurricane Ike hit Galveston, Texas, yet many low- and moderate-income neighborhoods and affordable homes have not been rebuilt or replaced. The result is a community that is less economically diverse and more likely to face serious workforce challenges in the coming years. This new Dallas Fed report explores the impact of redevelopment efforts and gentrification on Galveston specifically, but the lessons learned can inform individuals and communities recovering from recent natural disasters across the U.S.
posted 03/20/2018 by Dallas
Rust and Renewal: The Industrial Heartland from 1969 to the Present
Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh—once major centers of manufacturing. See how these metropolitan areas have fared during roughly the last half-century as manufacturing and other key sectors of their economies have evolved.
posted 03/13/2018 by Cleveland
Home Lending in Fayette County Neighborhoods
The fourth in a series of reports that analyze Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data, Cleveland Fed researchers look at pre- and post-Great Recession mortgage lending in the county that is home to Lexington, Kentucky. Read their findings.
posted 03/13/2018 by Cleveland
From Tenant Organizers to Housing Agencies: Using Data to Preserve Affordable Housing
This issue of Community Scope examines how in Washington, D.C., a network of organizers, government agency staff and affordable housing advocates have cooperatively developed quantitative and qualitative housing data to address the loss of subsidized, rent stabilized and market-affordable housing in gentrifying neighborhoods.
posted 03/05/2018 by Richmond
Financing Affordable Housing with the LIHTC
The availability of affordable housing in the Southeast is an increasing challenge, especially in areas of opportunity that have jobs, good schools and public transit. In light of these challenges, sources of funding for affordable housing are more important, and competitive, than ever. This article explores the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program, one of the best-known and most competitive sources of funding for affordable housing construction.
posted 02/14/2018 by Atlanta
Exploring Atlanta's Community Development Landscape with Governor Lael Brainard
As a proponent and facilitator of more equitable and inclusive communities, the Atlanta Fed’s community and economic development (CED) program works to activate financial, human, and social capital to foster economic growth and opportunity in low- and moderate-income communities in the Southeast. This article recaps a November 3, 2016, community tour that Atlanta Fed employees from CED and supervision and regulation organized for Fed Governor Lael Brainard. It was one of several trips she has made around the country to speak with community members and organizations about local challenges and community development efforts.
posted 02/05/2018 by Atlanta
Competitiveness of Ethnic Minority Neighborhoods in Metropolitan Areas in the Seventh District
This article from the Chicago Fed's ProfitWise News and Views, Issue 4, 2017, explores employment change in ethnic minority neighborhoods in the Seventh District in comparison to job growth within their regions before and after the Great Recession.
posted 01/04/2018 by Chicago
Advancing Regional Prosperity through Economic Inclusion: A Brief Conversation with Chicago Planning Agencies
This article from the Chicago Fed's ProfitWise News and Views, Issue 3, 2017, features a Q&A with the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning and the Metropolitan Planning Council on the role of economic inclusion in promoting regional prosperity.
posted 11/30/2017 by Chicago
Looking for Progress in America's Smaller Legacy Cities: A Report for Place-based Funders
This article, featured in the Chicago Fed's ProfitWise News and Views, Issue 3, 2017, draws from a joint publication of the Funders' Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communites, its member organizations, and the Federal Reserve Banks of Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, and New York, to explore roles of place-based funders in smaller, historically industrial cities.
posted 11/30/2017 by Chicago
Reinvesting in the Greater Chatham Neighborhoods in Chicago: New Data and Insights from Practitioners and Policymakers
This article from the Chicago Fed's ProfitWise News and Views, Issue 3, 2017, focuses on the Greater Chatham Initiative and includes an analysis of demographics and key elements of neighborhood economic stability in Chicago's Greater Chatham area.
posted 11/30/2017 by Chicago
What’s Gone Wrong (and Right) in the Industrial Heartland?
The historically Midwestern manufacturing region, sometimes referred to as the “Rust Belt,” faced another challenging period after 2000 when manufacturing employment declined by 1.2 million jobs. This Cleveland Fed Commentary investigates the relative economic performance of this region versus other US metropolitan areas during and following these job losses. The analysis shows that while unemployment rates have recovered in the metro areas of the industrial heartland, other economic indicators lag behind the manufacturing-intensive metro areas outside of the region.
posted 10/24/2017 by Cleveland
Informal Homeownership Issues: Tracking Contract for Deed Sales in the Southeast
Since the Great Recession, homeownership rates have dropped and the wealth divide has widened for low-income and racial and ethnic minority households. Homeownership is a significant contributor to household balance sheets and generator of household wealth, particularly for these populations. A contract for deed is a seller-financed real estate contract consisting of installment payments. For households that desire the financial and physical security of owning a home, contracts for deed may provide an inexpensive option. However, risks may exist. This discussion paper explores informal homeownership issues by tracking contract for deed sales in the Southeast.
posted 08/17/2017 by Atlanta
Home Lending Reports Reveal that Home Loan Outcomes Vary by Race, Income, and County
This article from the Cleveland Fed examines trends in Cuyahoga and Allegheny counties and reveals differences for not only the counties, but also for borrowers of different races and incomes.
posted 07/17/2017 by Cleveland
Home Lending in Allegheny County Neighborhoods
An analysis of Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data by two Cleveland Fed researchers finds differences in mortgage lending outcomes by race and income in Allegheny County (home of Pittsbugh, PA).
posted 07/17/2017 by Cleveland
Home Lending in Cuyahoga County Neighborhoods
Two Cleveland Fed researchers use Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data to examine trends in mortgage lending and find differing outcomes by race and income in Cuyahoga County (home of Cleveland, OH).
posted 07/17/2017 by Cleveland
Helping businesses and neighborhoods thrive through creative placemaking
Some Twin Cities neighborhoods are using art-based approaches to create distinct identities, spark public interest, and address challenges their residents face. From Community Dividend, a publication of the Minneapolis Fed.
posted 04/24/2017 by Minneapolis
Communities & Banking magazine, spring 2017
Read about C&B's transformation this fall into our new online magazine, Invested. Our spring 2017 feature article shares valuable lessons from the Boston Fed's Working Cities Challenge, an ongoing initiative to help smaller industrial cities in New England tackle social and economic problems. Also in this issue, we learn about the perils and abuses of land installment contracts, the value of community benefits agreements, and how entrepreneurship breeds opportunity in minority communities. Other articles highlight the importance of anchor institutions to local businesses, how "gamified" financial education seems to reinforce smart savings decisions, and we see evidence that pay-for-success approaches to preventing formerly incarcerated youth from reoffending can turn young lives around. Finally, we examine recent changes in the prospects for renters in New England.
posted 04/20/2017 by Boston
Looking for Progress in America's Smaller Legacy Cities: A Report for Place-Based Funders
Place-based funders can play an important role for connecting economic growth to economic opportunity. Looking for Progress in America's Smaller Legacy Cities: A Report for Place-Based Funders describes a study tour undertaken by representatives from four Federal Reserve Banks and more than two dozen place-based funders, under the auspices of the Funders' Network-Federal Reserve Philanthropy Initiative.
posted 04/17/2017 by Boston, New York, Atlanta, Chicago
Neighborhood Change in the Fourth Federal Reserve District: A Multivariate Approach
How often does the character of a neighborhood change, and what are the most common types of neighborhood change? A Cleveland Fed researcher has attempted to shed light on those two questions by looking at four cities (Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, and Pittsburgh) over a 40-year period (1970-2010).
posted 03/21/2017 by Cleveland
How Low Can Employment Growth Go without Boosting the Unemployment Rate in Fourth District States?
The nation continues to add jobs as the economic recovery continues, but employment growth is slowing, and even reversing, in some states, including those in the Fourth Federal Reserve District. How will this impact the District’s unemployment rate? In this January 2017 feature, a Cleveland Fed researcher examines five employment growth scenarios to find out.
posted 03/01/2017 by Cleveland
Participatory Budgeting: Enhancing Community Reinvestment through Public Engagement
Community engagement is not an easy task. This is especially true in communities with historically underrepresented and underserved populations who do not feel connected to the planning process. This 2016 article, featured in the Chicago Fed's ProfitWise News and Views, shows how some municipalities across the country are finding success through the use of participatory budgeting.
posted 01/17/2017 by Chicago
Corporate Landlords, Institutional Investors, and Displacement: Eviction Rates in Single-Family Rentals
Institutional investors purchased thousands of homes across the country to rent them after the real estate and financial crisis. In this December 2016 Community and Economic Development Discussion Paper from the Atlanta Fed, authors examine how the rise of the large corporate landlord in the single-family rental market affected housing stability in Atlanta.
posted 01/12/2017 by Atlanta
Gentrification and Changes in the Stock of Low-Cost Rental Housing in Philadelphia, 2000 to 2014
Philadelphia has experienced increased rental housing affordability challenges in recent years, especially in neighborhoods that have undergone gentrification. This report explores one aspect of gentrification’s impact on housing costs by examining its association with changes in Philadelphia’s stock of units that rent for less than $750 per month.
posted 01/04/2017 by Philadelphia
Investing in Healthy Rural Communities – Lessons Learned and Future Directions
This article, featured in ProfitWise News and Views from the Chicago Fed, summarizes a 2015 conference co-hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago at the University of Wisconsin–Platteville on building healthy and sustainable rural communities. The event provided an opportunity to explore what is working to build health, prosperity, and resilience in rural communities.
posted 12/06/2016 by Chicago
Comings and Goings in Eastern Kentucky
A Cleveland Fed analyst examines the demographic challenges eastern Kentucky faces as it tries to attract and retain a more diverse mix of jobs.
posted 11/23/2016 by Cleveland
Geographic Mobility and Consumer Financial Health: Evidence from Oil Production Boom Towns
One way a household might handle financial distress is to relocate to another area that offers greater income opportunities. A trio of Cleveland Fed researchers examines the impact of geographic mobility on consumer finances by focusing on the residents of “boom towns”—areas that saw a surge of growth in oil-drilling activity around 2010 and a bust thereafter. They find that residents who move after the bust experience stronger consumer financial health than residents who stay put.
posted 11/23/2016 by Cleveland
A Faster Foreclosure Option for Vacant, Abandoned Properties
Ohio law has been amended to allow for speedier foreclosures of so-called zombie properties, and this article asks Cleveland Fed community development experts if the new option will benefit neighborhoods.
posted 11/23/2016 by Cleveland
Communities & Banking Magazine, Fall 2016
The fall 2016 issue leads off with the necessity of teachers of color in public school systems and also reports on local educators' reactions to Common Core implementation. Other topics include the high prevalence of young adults receiving Social Security Disability benefits in northern New England, an overview of the region's addiction epidemic, a look at unemployment and the popularity of lotteries in Maine, and the relationship between homelessness and subsidized housing. More articles cover the Capital & Collaboration initiative's examination of community investment in Massachusetts Working Cities, how mobile payments help streamline commuting, a collaboration between Starbucks and a nonprofit group of CDFIs to create jobs, and data on childhood food insecurity in New England.
posted 10/25/2016 by Boston
Community Outlook Series, Issue 1: The Scarcity of Texas Affordable Housing
In this first issue of its new Community Outlook Series, the Dallas Fed analyzes results from a poll of 52 affordable housing developers in over 24 Texas counties, and includes qualitative interviews that address housing challenges for providers and low- and moderate-income families across the state. Key findings include: A third of all Texans are housing cost-burdened and developers face issues from rising costs, insufficient funding, strict regulations and community opposition. Learn more.
posted 10/07/2016 by Dallas
Bridges — Summer 2016
Bridges is a quarterly review of regional community and economic development issues, projects and regulatory changes for practitioners from community-based organizations, as well as for CRA officers, academics and government officials that work in the Eighth Federal Reserve District. Feature articles in the Summer 2016 issue include: All Low- and Moderate-Income Areas Are Not Created Equal; Moving First-Time Buyers Off the Fence: Solving the Millennial Homebuyer Puzzle with Proven Online Solutions and Partnerships; Innovative Partnership Brings Hope to Small Towns; Entrepreneurship and Economic Development Fueled by Students and Faculty; Impacting Homelessness in Missouri; and more.
posted 09/22/2016 by St. Louis
High-foreclosure neighborhoods see high volume of cash sales
A Minneapolis Fed analysis shows that during and after the housing market crash, the bulk of bank-owned homes in some neighborhoods were purchased with cash—likely by investors. From Community Dividend, a publication of the Minneapolis Fed.
posted 09/19/2016 by Minneapolis
Community Development Investment Review - Middle Neighborhoods
This volume from the San Francisco Fed is about a type of American neighborhood that has been largely absent in the long-standing discussion about America’s neighborhoods—those neighborhoods in America’s cities and suburbs that are not in deep distress, but are not thriving either. The authors hope to reinvigorate a discussion about improving middle neighborhoods in America’s cities and suburbs as a complement to the discussion underway nationally and in many local settings about improving distressed neighborhoods or coping with gentrification.
posted 09/06/2016 by San Francisco
The Changing Composition of Bank Branches in Seventh Federal Reserve District States
The banking office landscape has shifted substantially across the United States since the financial crisis in 2008, reflecting both long-standing trends of small bank closures, as well as more recent patterns of bank branch declines. These trends are playing out in the states of the Seventh District as well, where the number of banking offices has declined in each state, and increasingly, community banks are losing their share of branches in certain markets. Low- and moderate-income (LMI) neighborhoods in a few of the District’s most populous counties are nearly devoid of community banks. This article, from the Chicago Fed's ProftWise News and Views, Issue 2, 2016, describes the changes in bank branch presence over time in the Seventh District by size of institutions and the neighborhoods they serve.
posted 09/06/2016 by Chicago
Community Land Trust Model: Opportunities and Challenges of Preserving Affordable Housing
At least a dozen low-income apartment buildings exclusively for seniors in Detroit’s midtown and downtown areas could convert to market rate apartments in the next ten years, forcing hundreds of seniors to find new homes. Many of the senior apartment buildings were filled in the 1980s when few people wanted to live downtown. This article, in Chicago Fed's ProfitWise, Issue 2, 2016, explores community land trusts as a means to address affordable housing shortages and gentrification.
posted 08/26/2016 by Chicago
Closing the Digital Divide: A Framework for Meeting CRA Obligations
Access to broadband has become an essential component of economic opportunity and financial well-being, yet there is a significant digital divide in many underserved communities.This Dallas Fed publication is a practical guide for financial institutions that shows how digital inclusion can improve the lives of low- and moderate-income individuals who have limited access to broadband infrastructure. It presents best practices and information on lending, services and investments that can help close the digital divide and contribute to an inclusive and vibrant entrepreneurial economy.
posted 07/20/2016 by Dallas
Bridges — Spring 2016
Bridges is a quarterly review of regional community and economic development issues, projects and regulatory changes for practitioners from community-based organizations, as well as for CRA officers, academics and government officials that work in the Eighth Federal Reserve District. Feature articles in the Spring 2016 issue include: Arkansas Communities Focus on Action, Reap Results; What Happens When the Least of These Gives the Most?; From Restaurant to Kitchen Incubator: Chef Space; Bioscience as a Foundation for Transforming St. Louis; The Information You Need for the Impact You Want: Two New Websites Link Data with Donor Action; and more.
posted 06/22/2016 by St. Louis
California Post-RDA Affordable Housing Developer Survey: Analysis of Results
The San Francisco Fed, in partnership with Housing California, surveyed California’s affordable housing developers in October 2015 to learn how they are faring three years after the dissolution of redevelopment agencies (RDAs); how their development pipelines have been affected by the loss of RDA funds; and how new legislation, local regulation, or funding strategies have impacted affordable housing development over the past three years. This report is an analysis of current conditions and challenges expressed in the survey responses of 71 affordable housing development organizations across California.
posted 06/01/2016 by San Francisco
The Emerging Economic Geography of Single-Family Rental Securitization
This San Francisco Fed working paper utilizes data culled from presale reports from the first wave of rental-backed securities to analyze and describe the emerging trend of single-family home rental (SFR) securitization. Authors provide a basic overview of the market, showing the number and market value of single-family homes involved in these new financial products.
posted 06/01/2016 by San Francisco
Residential Mortgage Lending for Underserved Communities: Recent Innovations
Given changing regulatory and market factors in mortgage finance, the time is ripe for innovation, and it behooves policymakers, business leaders, and communities to consider potential alternatives to traditional mortgages. In this 2016 ProfitWise New and Views article, the Chicago Fed’s Community Development and Policy Studies (CDPS) Division explores five innovative products in the residential mortgage marketplace – some already in place, others in progress.
posted 05/16/2016 by Chicago
From Coal to Craft: Eastern Kentucky’s Changing Economy
This Forefront article from the Cleveland Fed is the second installment of a 4-part series examining eastern Kentucky's transition away from a coal-centric economy. This article looks at creative placemaking as an economic development tool the region can use.
posted 05/09/2016 by Cleveland
Negative Equity in the Sixth Federal Reserve District
Although seven years have passed since the end of the Great Recession, recovery in the housing sector has been inconsistent across the country. This discussion paper explores how these dynamics are playing out in the Southeastern United States and the neighborhood characteristics that accompany persistent concentrations of negative equity in the region.
posted 03/28/2016 by Atlanta
State of the State: Pennsylvania
This brief analysis of Pennsylvania's economy by the Cleveland Fed finds that Pennsylvania’s employment growth in 2015 trailed that of most other states. The state’s exposure to the oil and gas industry as well as demographic trends have a good deal to do with it.
posted 03/15/2016 by Cleveland
Eastern Kentucky: A Region in Flux
This Forefront article from the Cleveland Fed is part 1 of a 4-part series examining eastern Kentucky's transition away from a coal-centric economy. This installment looks at some of the history of coal mining in the region and how its decline is impacting the economy.
posted 03/15/2016 by Cleveland
Bridges — Winter 2015-2016
Bridges is a quarterly review of regional community and economic development issues, projects and regulatory changes for practitioners from community-based organizations, as well as for CRA officers, academics and government officials that work in the Eighth Federal Reserve District. Feature articles in the Winter 2015-2016 issue include: Thrivers and Strugglers: A Growing Economic Divide; Neighborhood “House Economy” Teaches Youth Life Lessons; Grassroots Neighborhood Revitalization in Hyde Park; Collaboration: The Key to Champion Community Investments’ Success; How Housing and Health Care Nonprofits Can Increase Access to Medical Residential Services; Jacobsville Join In!; and more.
posted 03/09/2016 by St. Louis
Offsetting Gentrification and Fostering Inclusive Transit-Oriented Development
The Atlanta Fed cohosted a symposium at the 2015 Rail~Volution conference to examine strategies that would promote equitable transit-oriented development without gentrifying a neighborhood and displacing residents. This January/February 2016 Partners Update article provides a peek inside the discussions from the October 2015 sessions.
posted 02/05/2016 by Philadelphia, Richmond, Atlanta, Kansas City, Dallas, San Francisco
The Small Cities Study Tour: Chattanooga's Comeback
How have some small cities forged a path to economic resurgence while others still languish? Representatives from several Federal Reserve Banks and place-based funders are on tour to find out. In this first article in a Partners Update series, they study a revitalized Chattanooga.
posted 02/05/2016 by Atlanta
TexasColonias.org
A website that accompanies the Dallas Fed study, "Las Colonias in the 21st Century: Progress Along the Texas-Mexico Border," which examines successes and challenges in infrastructure, housing, economic opportunity, education and health in Texas colonias. The site features a report, video, photos, success stories, data, legislation information and related resources.
posted 01/22/2016 by Dallas
Blight Remediation in the Southeast: Local Approaches to Design and Implementation
How might communities deal with vacant, abandoned, and "problem" properties? This discussion paper examines successful blight remediation strategies in two southeastern cities--New Orleans, Louisiana, and Macon, Georgia.
posted 12/17/2015 by Atlanta
Community Prosecution: A Strategy to Tackle Blight with Communities
Community prosecution is one method to mitigate crime in a community through a proactive and decentralized approach to problem solving. This first article in a series, from in the Nov/Dec edition of Partners Update, looks at how the city of Dallas is using community prosecution to reduce blight in target neighborhoods.
posted 12/17/2015 by Atlanta
2015 NHS Community Banks Partnership Meeting summary
Established in 2007, the Community Banks Partnership is an innovative collaborative that supports NHS’ community reinvestment programs and services through financial support, lending capital, service and counsel. This group meets at least once annually to discuss issues important to the housing and lending industries. This article, from Issue 3, 2015 Profitwise News and Views, summarizes a second quarter convening at the Chicago Fed: NHS of Chicago’s annual Community Banks Partnership meeting. Among other topics, panelists discussed the housing market for ‘millennial’ buyers, and the regulatory landscape for community banks.
posted 12/01/2015 by Chicago
Detroit’s Proposed Community Benefits Ordinance
The Community Benefit Agreement (CBA) model was created in the late 1990s as a tool to ensure that neighborhood residents would benefit from economic development projects, which are often heavily subsidized by taxpayer dollars. This article, from the Chicago Fed’s Community Development and Policy Studies Division, explores community benefits agreements and ordinances in Detroit, providing some background, as well as on-the-ground experience in the city as it struggles to regain ground economically.
posted 12/01/2015 by Chicago
A Long Ride to Work: Job Access and Public Transportation in Northeast Ohio
Lacking transit access, many lower-skilled workers in Northeast Ohio miss out on job opportunities, say Cleveland Fed researchers. This study looks at what Northeast Ohio business and civic leaders can do to increase job access.
posted 11/30/2015 by Cleveland
A Practitioner's Summary: Gentrification and Residential Mobility in Philadelphia
This summary of the report Gentrification and Residential Mobility in Philadelphia provides applied findings appropriate for a community development practitioner audience on gentrification and neighborhood change in Philadelphia.
posted 11/10/2015 by Philadelphia
Gentrification and Residential Mobility in Philadelphia
New research from the Philadelphia Fed, Gentrification and Residential Mobility in Philadelphia, explores the topic of gentrification and the effects of neighborhood change on vulnerable residents. This discussion paper provides an in-depth analysis on which neighborhoods in Philadelphia are gentrifying, who is moving into and out of gentrifying neighborhoods, and the experiences of vulnerable residents in those neighborhoods.
posted 11/10/2015 by Philadelphia
Community Development Data Inventory
Published by the Philadelphia Fed, the Community Development Data Inventory describes timely and publicly available data sources to help inform the work of those involved in community development research or practice. This November 2015 release contains updated information and an expanded number in the inventory, from 16 resources to 24. The resources are described in easy-to-read, two-page summaries organized by topic, including Economy/Employment, Household Financial Stability, Housing/Homelessness, and Data/Mapping Platforms.
posted 11/10/2015 by Philadelphia
Bridges — Summer 2015
Bridges, a quarterly review of regional community and economic development issues, projects, and regulatory changes, is for practitioners from community-based organizations, CRA officers, academics, and government officials working in the Eighth Federal Reserve District. Feature articles in the Summer 2015 issue include: Innovative Credit Union Association Expands Access to Capital; Better Homes, Better Loans: Better Business; Binghampton Development Corporation: Building Assets and Communities; The Hager Educational Foundation: Empowering Citizens To Make Better Communities; and more.
posted 11/06/2015 by St. Louis
Community Connections (November 2015 Issue)
The Kansas City Fed’s November 2015 Community Connections provides insights into borrower activity and looks at the future role of CDFIs. The issue also explores the relationship between community development and health, and examines creative approaches to workforce development and entrepreneurship.
posted 11/05/2015 by Kansas City
Community Banking in the 21st Century
Missed the live webcast? Presentation slides and videos are now available from “Community Banking in the 21st Century,” the third annual community banking research and policy conference, hosted by the Federal Reserve System and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS). Also available from the conference is a report that details conditions facing today's community bankers. Speakers and moderators of the event, held in St. Louis Sept. 30 - Oct. 1, 2015, included: Fed Chair Janet Yellen; Fed Governor Lael Brainard; St. Louis Fed President James Bullard; CSBS Chairman/Massachusetts Commissioner of Banks David Cotney; CSBS President and CEO John Ryan; and Houston Astros President of Business Operations Reid Ryan, founding investor and board member, R Bank and R Corp Financial, Round Rock, Texas.
posted 10/30/2015 by Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Richmond, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Dallas, San Francisco, Board of Governors
Gentrification, Displacement and the Role of Public Investment: A Literature Review
Scholarly interest in the relationship between investment and displacement dates back to the 1970s, in the aftermath of displacement related to urban renewal. More recently, a new wave of scholarship examines gentrification, primarily in strong market cities, and its relationship to public investment, particularly in transit. The results of these studies are mixed, due in part to methodological shortcomings. A primary finding looking across the literature is that there is a need for a new methodology to analyze displacement risk.
posted 10/05/2015 by San Francisco
Rebuilding after Disaster Strikes: How Local Lenders Aid in the Recovery
Using detailed employment data on firm age and size, a Cleveland Fed researcher’s findings suggest that local lenders play an important and necessary role in job creation in the economy. Research economist Kristle Romero Cortes uses natural disasters and regulatory guidance to disentangle the effects of credit supply and demand in this 2014 working paper.
posted 09/10/2015 by Cleveland
Using credit risk scores to understand neighborhood change
An analysis of credit scores across the Twin Cities area points to contrasting patterns over the last decade. From the July 2015 issue of Community Dividend, a publication of the Minneapolis Fed.
posted 08/14/2015 by Minneapolis
VIDEO | Las Colonias in the 21st Century: Progress Along the Texas–Mexico Border
In 2015, the Dallas Fed released “Las Colonias in the 21st Century: Progress Along the Texas–Mexico Border,” a report that examines infrastructure, housing, economic opportunity, education and health in Texas border colonias. This video provides an overview of successes and challenges in the colonias as well as promising strategies to improve living conditions and access to opportunity in these communities.
posted 08/04/2015 by Dallas
Gentrification: What’s in a Name?
Interest in gentrification is at an all-time high, but determining what differentiates ‘gentrification’ from reinvestment and revitalization isn’t always easy. One Cleveland Fed policy analyst says retaining affordable housing can help alleviate the negative effects associated with gentrification.
posted 07/21/2015 by Cleveland
Detroit Tackles the Issue of Blight
Of 380,000 parcels located in the city of Detroit, nearly 85,000 properties (excluding large-scale commercial structures) have been identified as needing some form of blight intervention. This article details some of the efforts made the city of Detroit and the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago to eliminate blight.
posted 06/29/2015 by Chicago
Bridges — Spring 2015
Bridges is a quarterly review of regional community and economic development issues, projects and regulatory changes for practitioners from community-based organizations, as well as for CRA officers, academics and government officials that work in the Eighth Federal Reserve District. Feature articles in the Spring 2015 issue include: Community Counts: Activating All Families To Save for Higher Education; Preparing and Promoting Communities through Economic Analysis; Designing Opportunity: Ending Generational Poverty and Re-establishing Economic Stability in Rural America; Building Creative Communities; and more.
posted 06/19/2015 by St. Louis
Community Connections (April 2015 Issue)
This bimonthly newsletter from the Kansas City Fed provides information on community and economic development trends across the Tenth Federal Reserve District.
posted 06/05/2015 by Kansas City
St. Louis Fed 2014 Community Development Outlook Survey
The St. Louis Fed’s annual Community Development Outlook Survey gathers input from a variety of stakeholders regarding the economic conditions of low- and moderate-income (LMI) households and communities in the seven states that make up the Fed’s Eighth District. Data from the survey is used to inform strategic planning, community and economic development, and public policy dialogue around issues and challenges for the District’s LMI areas.
posted 05/21/2015 by St. Louis
Access to Affordable Housing now Ranks among Top Concerns
Affordable housing now ranks among the top concerns facing communities in the Fourth District. Jobs and vacant properties round out the top three. The Spring 2015 edition of Issues & Insights features analysis of results from the Cleveland Fed’s annual community issues survey of stakeholders, along with innovative approaches being tried in communities across the District, which comprises Ohio, western Pennsylvania, eastern Kentucky, and the panhandle of West Virginia.
posted 05/04/2015 by Cleveland
Economic Dynamism in Small Cities
Many small cities are growing at faster rates than has occurred in decades. This March/April 2015 Partners Update article by the Atlanta Fed's Will Lambe examines factors that contribute to economically vital small cities.
posted 05/04/2015 by Atlanta
Neighborhood Poverty and Quality in the Moving to Opportunity Experiment
Why might health, employment, and income continue to exhibit major disparities across racial groups in the United States? This Economic Commentary from researchers at the Cleveland Fed examines the cities that participated in the Moving to Opportunity social experiment to understand how different characteristics might be used to distinguish neighborhood environments, and how these characteristics relate to neighborhood poverty.
posted 04/24/2015 by Cleveland
Las Colonias in the 21st Century: Progress Along the Texas-Mexico Border
This Dallas Fed report describes and analyzes opportunities, successes and challenges of colonias located in six Texas border counties using both quantitative and qualitative data. The report focuses on infrastructure, housing, economic opportunity, education and health.
posted 04/23/2015 by Dallas
Metro Mix
Curious about economic conditions in the Fourth District? Metro Mix has you covered with snapshots of economic conditions and prospects in the nine largest MSAs in the Fourth District--Cleveland, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Wheeling, WV, Dayton, Lexington, Erie, and Toledo.
posted 04/10/2015 by Cleveland
The Role of Place-Based Initiatives in Community Development
As the name says, these initiatives are designed to concentrate investments in a specific location, and some couple infrastructure and human capital investments. This Partners Update article by the Atlanta Fed's Will Lambe summarizes place-based initiatives, describes challenges for communities incorporating such a strategy, and discusses best practices.
posted 03/31/2015 by Atlanta
Rooms for Improvement: A Qualitative Meta-analysis of the Housing Choice Voucher Program
A Qualitative Meta-analysis of the Housing Choice Voucher Program” by Erin M. Graves synthesizes housing subsidy voucher studies to explain why, when in theory, vouchers enable users to move out of poor neighborhoods, in practice, they often do not. This qualitative meta-analysis presents an examination of the formative assumptions of the program and their relationship to empirical findings.
posted 03/25/2015 by Boston
The Arts Meet Community Development
The creative industries contribute about a million jobs to the U.S. economy, with supporting industries offering millions more. This Partners Update article by the Atlanta Fed's Joe Rondone, looks at the role the arts could play in the community development field.
posted 03/16/2015 by Atlanta
Research center connects university resources with community groups
The University of Minnesota's Center for Urban and Regional Affairs, or CURA, offers an array of services through its community-strengthening programs. From the January 2015 issue of Community Dividend, a publication of the Minneapolis Fed.
posted 02/09/2015 by Minneapolis
Resilience in Planning: A Review of Comprehensive Plans in Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina
In the nine years since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, many affected communities have revamped their municipal plans. This discussion paper by Atlanta Fed research analyst Ann Carpenter examines these plans and compares their content with what is known about resilience from the perspective of fostering connected communities with a strong sense of place.
posted 02/02/2015 by Atlanta
Community Development Investment Review - Creative Placemaking
Artists and cultural institutions have an important role to play in neighborhood social and economic vitality. As community developers consider how best to reimagine space they can and should look to the arts to help create place. This work, otherwise known as “creative placemaking,” is beginning to take shape across the country. This issue of the San Francisco Fed’s Community Development Investment Review is dedicated to this emerging work.
posted 01/12/2015 by San Francisco
5th District Footprint: Changes in the Rural-Urban Composition of the Fifth District
Is your county one of the 68 counties in the Fifth Federal Reserve District that have become more urban since 2003? Or is it one of only 22 that have become more rural? Find out in this issue of 5th District Footprint, which takes a look at changes along the rural-urban continuum in the Fifth District between 2003 and 2013.
posted 12/30/2014 by Richmond
Bridges -- Fall 2014
Bridges is a quarterly review of regional community and economic development issues, projects and regulatory changes for practitioners from community-based organizations, as well as for CRA officers, academics and government officials that work in the Eighth Federal Reserve District. Feature articles in the Fall 2014 issue include: How the Shrinking of the Labor Force Might Impact Your Community; St. Louis Initiative Increases Youth Labor Force Participation; Broad Avenue’s New Face; Hands-On Commitment to Financial Education; and more.
posted 12/19/2014 by St. Louis
Bridges -- Summer 2014
Bridges is a quarterly review of regional community and economic development issues, projects and regulatory changes for practitioners from community-based organizations, as well as for CRA officers, academics and government officials that work in the Eighth Federal Reserve District. Feature articles in the Summer 2014 issue include: Treasury’s myRA To Debut in Late 2014; RISE to the Challenge: Immigrant Entrepreneurship in Louisville; Creating Opportunity Pathways for Asset Development; Redefining Historic Preservation; and more.
posted 12/19/2014 by St. Louis
Understanding Community Development Needs through the CRA Performance Context
Community development efforts to revitalize low- and moderate-income neighborhoods should begin with an appropriate understanding of the needs and opportunities present within these communities. This sentiment is especially true of banks looking to fulfill their Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) obligations. A truly responsive and innovative CRA program should begin with the “performance context,” or knowledge about the bank’s local markets, including the needs of the community as well as the opportunities that exist within the local network of resources and organizations. This paper from the San Francisco Fed attempts to demystify the performance context and establish its strategic value to the CRA process. It explores new opportunities for strengthening the performance context as a community development tool, from the perspective of both bankers and regulators.
posted 12/08/2014 by San Francisco
What Counts: Harnessing Data for America’s Communities
With 90 percent of the world’s data generated in just the past two years, What Counts: Harnessing Data for America’s Communities challenges policymakers, funders, and practitioners across sectors to seize this new opportunity to revolutionize our approaches to improve lives in low-income communities. This book from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and the Urban Institute provides a roadmap for the strategic use of data to reduce poverty, improve health, expand access to quality education, increase employment, and build stronger and more resilient communities. Videos from the launch event on December 4, 2014, are available on the San Francisco Fed's Community Development YouTube channel.
posted 12/04/2014 by San Francisco
Mortgage Lending in New England: Key Trends and Observations in 2012
Analyzing Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data, researchers at the Boston Fed provide a brief overview of New England's mortgage lending activity in 2012 and evidence of disparities in loan origination outcomes for borrowers of various incomes, races, and ethnicities in this Community Development Issue Brief from November 2014.
posted 11/13/2014 by Boston
What Makes Working Cities Work? Key Factors in Urban Economic Growth
In this Community Development Issue Brief, a researcher at the Boston Fed examines the factors that influence firm location choice in US cities--including availability of local labor, building lease costs, on-site parking for employees, and others--along with which of these might best explain the variance in employment trends across a set of small and mid-sized post-industrial Massachusetts cities. The results provide some indication of the extent to which these cities, and others like them, might influence their own economic futures.
posted 11/13/2014 by Boston
Inclusionary Housing Policies: A Promising Tool for Housing Affordability
The U.S. housing market has been on the mend since the recession ended, but increasing property values are leaving many families of modest means priced out of homeownership. In this Partners Update article, researchers from the Atlanta Fed examine inclusionary housing policies as one possible solution.
posted 11/12/2014 by Atlanta
Deep Wells, Deep Pockets, and Deep Impact
This article from the Cleveland Fed's policy journal, Forefront, highlights the shale gas industry, which brings both costs and benefits to the communities it pervades. But community leaders must give careful thought to, and lay plans for, when the industry leaves town.
posted 11/11/2014 by Cleveland
Using housing regulation as a community-engagement tool: A conversation with Nuria Rivera-Vandermyde
The Minneapolis Fed's Community Dividend publication speaks with Nuria Rivera-Vandermyde, director of the City of Minneapolis Department of Regulatory Services, to learn how housing regulations and inspections can affect neighborhood stability. From the October 2014 issue.
posted 11/04/2014 by Minneapolis
Working with finite resources, Twin Cities rental housing inspectors reward good, target bad
Despite tight budgets and swelling workloads, inspection departments in Minneapolis and St. Paul are exploring proactive approaches to ensure a safe and sound supply of rental housing. From the October 2014 issue of Community Dividend, a publication of the Minneapolis Fed.
posted 11/04/2014 by Minneapolis
The Rise of Single-Family Rentals in Arizona, California, and Nevada
This Research Brief from the San Francisco Fed examines trends in rental housing composition in Arizona, California and Nevada and takes a closer look at local areas that have seen the fastest growth in single-family rentals. These three states were hit particularly hard by the foreclosure crisis and have major markets that have been impacted by investor purchases.
posted 10/06/2014 by San Francisco
Tenth District LMI Labor Force Report
The Kansas City Fed recently launched the first installment of its newest periodic series. The Tenth District LMI Labor Force Report provides a snapshot of low-and-moderate-income (LMI) labor market conditions in the Tenth Federal Reserve District. The analyses provide trends in unemployment rates, employment projections for workers with training and experience typical of the LMI, wage data, and the LMI Job Availability Index from the Kansas City Fed’s LMI Survey. The goal of the report is to provide community development and social service organizations, policymakers, and others a gauge of District LMI labor market conditions.
posted 08/11/2014 by Kansas City
Small Legacy Cities, Equity, and a Changing Economy
This report released by the Philadelphia Fed reflects research conducted by students completing their master’s degrees in city and regional planning at the University of Pennsylvania, who investigated recent revitalization efforts in Bethlehem, Pa., Lancaster, Pa., and Wilmington, Del., with a focus on equity rather than on stated outcomes. This report summarizes their findings, includes proposals designed to produce equitable outcomes in each city, and provides a blueprint for cities interested in considering equity as an objective in future development efforts.
posted 08/08/2014 by Philadelphia
The Effectiveness of Pre-Purchase Homeownership Counseling and Financial Management Skills
Buying a home is exhausting enough; does it help to add hours of financial counseling to the process? In a longitudinal study by the Philadelphia Fed, researchers evaluate the effectiveness of pre-purchase homeownership and financial management skills counseling. The study improves on previous efforts by employing an experimental design methodology, and it tracks study participants’ creditworthiness over time. Two key findings: pre-purchase homeownership counseling improves financial capability, and more hours of counseling produce greater outcomes for participants.
posted 08/07/2014 by Philadelphia
The Pattern of Appraisal Bias in the Third District During the Housing Crisis
While appraisers have often been criticized for the inflated home values that were more prevalent during the housing boom, little research has been done to help understand how appraisal valuations respond to rapidly changing local market conditions and regulatory environments. In this discussion paper by the Philadelphia Fed’s Community Development Studies & Education department, researchers examine the pattern of appraisal bias in the Third Federal Reserve District during the housing crisis. Based on a unique transaction-level appraisal data set, this study evaluates how the lack of market activity, the concentration of foreclosures, and the increased use of appraisal management companies, as well as other factors, impact the incidence of low appraisals during the crisis.
posted 08/07/2014 by Philadelphia
Cascade (Summer 2014)
This edition of the Philadelphia Fed's Cascade provides highlights from the 2014 Reinventing Older Communities: Bridging Growth & Opportunity conference. The major themes of intergenerational mobility and equitable growth and subthemes of education, employment, and revitalization appear throughout the issue. Articles focus on measuring intergenerational mobility and economic growth in the Third Federal Reserve District; reversing the cycle of poverty through education and mentoring, as well as workforce development; exploring the future of community development corporations (CDC) and measuring CDC impact; and more.
posted 08/07/2014 by Philadelphia
Plan. Prepare. Prevail. A Disaster Financial Readiness & Recovery Blueprint.
The Kansas City Fed provides financial forms, checklists and other resources to help consumers and small business owners prepare before and recover after disaster strikes. These resources were developed from a series of focus groups and meetings held in the tenth district.
posted 08/06/2014 by Kansas City
12th District County Profiles
The 12th District County Profiles, published by the San Francisco Fed, provide valuable information on the various labor-market, housing, and economic development issues impacting communities throughout the nine western states. More counties will be added in future rounds of profiles, so check back often to see if your community is featured!
posted 08/05/2014 by San Francisco
Federal Reserve Community Development Perspectives
Ever wonder about the Federal Reserve’s involvement in the field of community development? Wonder no more. Released in June 2014, Federal Reserve Community Development Perspectives: A summary of activities, insights, and future opportunities answers the "what," "why" and "how" of the Fed's role in community development. The report highlights the Fed’s recent efforts to address barriers to economic growth, and promote fair and informed access to financial markets. Featuring brief summaries of its community development work organized into four focus areas--people, place, the policy and practice of community development, and small business--the report includes background information that helps to provide context for this work, a sampling of key research, outreach programs and other initiatives, as well as some ideas on future challenges, needs and opportunities.
posted 07/23/2014 by Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Richmond, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Dallas, San Francisco, Board of Governors
Neighborhood Gentrification during the Boom and After
Has gentrification continued after the recession? During the housing boom, a number of large cities in the United States experienced redevelopment in their lower-income neighborhoods as higher-income residents moved in. Looser lending standards may have contributed to this gentrification trend. With tighter lending standards in place following the housing bust and financial crisis, researchers at the Cleveland Fed examined how the income rankings of neighborhoods in the centers of metropolitan areas have changed relative to those in the suburbs since 2000. In this Economic Trends report, they explain their methodology and findings.
posted 07/22/2014 by Cleveland
An Analysis of the Neighborhood Impacts of a Mortgage Assistance Program: A Spatial Hedonic Model
This Dallas Fed research uses a spatial hedonic model to analyze 5,500 downpayment assistance loans made from 1997 to 2006 in the City of Dallas Mortgage Assistance Program (MAP). The study estimates the impact of subsidized mortgages on nearby home values and compares the performance of MAP loans to subprime and FHA loans.
posted 07/02/2014 by Dallas
Bridges — Spring 2014
Bridges is a quarterly review of regional community and economic development issues, projects and regulatory changes for practitioners from community-based organizations, as well as for CRA officers, academics and government officials that work in the Eighth Federal Reserve District. Feature articles in the Spring 2014 issue include: Local Innovation, National Impact: Engaging Municipal Government in Financial Empowerment; Enrollment, Student Debt and LMI Communities; We’ve Met the Solution, and It Is Us; West Tennessee Day Trippin’: Rural Tourism Campaign Builds Regional Partnerships for Community and Economic Development; From the Ozarks to the Delta: A Historical Perspective of Regional Poverty in Arkansas; and more.
posted 07/01/2014 by St. Louis
Industrial Cities Initiative
The Chicago Fed provides findings from its recent Industrial Cities Initiative (ICI), an effort to gain a better understanding of the economic, demographic, and social trends shaping industrial cities in the Midwest. The report profiles ten Midwestern cities and explores the trends and experiences of each city individually, in comparison to peers and in comparison to their home states and the nation.
posted 06/23/2014 by Chicago
The Historical Perspectives on the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977
This article, from the Chicago Fed's Profitwise News and Views, provides historical perspective on the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). A pivotal and at times controversial law, the CRA added new dimensions to the Fed’s responsibilities late in the twentieth century.
posted 06/23/2014 by Chicago
The Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC): Challenges Presented by the Onset of Year 15 in the St. Louis Region
This paper examines the challenges, along with current and expected future trends in affordable housing preservation and development utilizing LIHTCs.
posted 06/16/2014 by St. Louis
Fiscal Stress in the Small Postindustrial City: Causes, Consequences, and Implications for Community Development
Published by the Philadelphia Fed, this report explores the fiscal challenges facing 10 small postindustrial cities in the Third Federal Reserve District. Using historic data to help explain the structural nature of the cities' challenges, this report then describes indicators commonly used to assess fiscal health and applies them to recent financial data for the 10 cities. The report also discusses implications for public support of community development investments and introduces strategies to improve the fiscal health of the postindustrial city.
posted 05/22/2014 by Philadelphia
Out of the Shadow: Strategies for Change in Small Postindustrial Cities
Published by the Philadelphia Fed, this special report is a follow-up to the largely quantitative “In Philadelphia's Shadow,” which tracks the histories, current conditions, and trajectories of 13 small postindustrial cities in the Third Federal Reserve District. Focusing on the same 13 cities and drawing on interviews, experience, and the literature, the author explores the factors that have led to greater success in some cities and less in others. Many of these factors are strongly behavioral in nature, reflecting in part the values and relationships of each city's leadership and stakeholders. As it examines effective strategies and promising practices, this report offers insights intended to assist these cities in confronting their challenges and thriving as successful postindustrial cities.
posted 05/22/2014 by Philadelphia
School Quality and Affordable Housing in the Bay Area
Historically, subsidized housing is concentrated in locations that are largely isolated from amenity-rich areas. While a variety of federal and local programs offer expanded neighborhood choice to lower-income households reliant on housing assistance, the bulk of subsidized affordable housing remains unevenly distributed across different types of neighborhoods. This research brief from the San Francisco Fed looks at how these patterns play out in the nine-county Bay Area of Northern California, focusing on the relative locations of subsidized housing and high quality schools.
posted 05/20/2014 by San Francisco
CDFIs and Transit-Oriented Development
Transit-oriented development (TOD) can provide households with more opportunities and choices. Ideal TOD communities are mixed-use neighborhoods with good-quality public transit that connect people of a variety of incomes to a wide range of economic, social, and educational opportunities. This report published by the San Francisco Fed explores how Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) can be utilized to provide financing for TOD projects.
posted 05/20/2014 by San Francisco
Vantage Point: The 12th District Community Indicators Project
Launched in 2011 by the San Francisco Fed, this project collects input from community stakeholders about the issues and trends facing low- and moderate-income communities in the 12th District. Reports synthesize key themes that emerge from the surveys.
posted 05/20/2014 by San Francisco
The Suburbanization of Poverty
Using data from U.S. Census Bureau, this research brief from the San Francisco Fed analyzes the changing geography of poverty in the Bay Area. It focuses on the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area and explores the demographic changes that took place between 2000 and 2009.
posted 05/20/2014 by San Francisco
Housing Market Recovery in the 12th District: Implications for Low- and Moderate-Income Communities
Following the aftermath of the Great Recession, national indicators are starting to show signs of improvement in the housing market, but these indicators mask the realities of what’s happening on the ground in low- and moderate-income (LMI) communities. Complicating matters is the unprecedented role of investors in the housing recovery. This Research Brief from the San Francisco Fed provides an overview of related issues and examines housing market recovery and investor activity in the Federal Reserve’s 12th District.
posted 05/19/2014 by San Francisco
CRA Collaboratives and the San Joaquin Valley
California’s San Joaquin Valley is one of the nation’s most impoverished areas. Recent developments such as the foreclosure crisis have heightened the Valley’s needs, and there is also evidence that the Valley is beginning to garner more attention from financial institutions and federal regulators, creating an opportunity for community-based organizations (CBOs) and financial institutions to work together in a mutually beneficial way. This paper from the San Francisco Fed describes how stakeholders have successfully collaborated to increase reinvestment in other locales, with lessons learned for the San Joaquin Valley.
posted 05/15/2014 by San Francisco
Community Investments - Community Development in Native Communities
This issue of the San Francisco Fed’s Community Investments, explores a selection of Native initiatives across the country. It discusses how Native communities are partnering with federal agencies to build and support sustainable housing in Indian Country and establish modern water and sewer systems for remote Native communities in Alaska. The articles also examine a community-based health worker initiative in the Navajo Nation and a Native Hawaiian financial education program and community-based lending institution.
posted 05/15/2014 by San Francisco
The Subprime Crisis in Suburbia: Exploring the Links between Foreclosures and Suburban Poverty
This working paper from the San Francisco Fed provides an overview of patterns of subprime lending, as well as trends in foreclosures and REOs, in suburban communities compared to inner-cities. It explores the relationship between foreclosures in suburban areas and the increased suburbanization of poverty.
posted 05/15/2014 by San Francisco
Community Investments - Collective Action for Community Development
This issue of the San Francisco Fed’s Community Investments explores the emerging approach of collaborative community development and lifts up early learnings from pioneers in the field. The articles discuss how to establish and grow collective action leadership organizations and working groups and build a strong but flexible initiative framework; consider how government can be an effective partner in collective action work; and convey the critical role of data and measurement in these initiatives.
posted 05/14/2014 by San Francisco
Community Development Investment Review: The Green Issue
In this issue of CDIR, the San Francisco Fed highlights a number of deliberate, innovative and interdisciplinary efforts addressing community development and environmental issues. These efforts are diverse, both in the issues they touch and the range of approaches and partnerships they employ. Issues addressed include air quality, climate change and water access on the environmental side, and education, health, and affordable housing on the community development side.
posted 05/08/2014 by San Francisco
Community Development Investment Review: Innovations in Neighborhood Stabilization: Responses to the Foreclosure Crisis
In this issue of the CDIR, the San Francisco Fed brings together a series of articles highlighting some of the stabilization strategies emerging from the efforts of committed nonprofits across the country. Included are lessons learned from the Housing Partnership Network’s 2011-2013 Innovations in Neighborhood Stabilization and Foreclosure Prevention Initiative along with a series of essays written by influential nonprofit and public sector leaders that enriches the conversation about neighborhood stabilization, providing new and provocative perspectives on this work.
posted 05/08/2014 by San Francisco
Credit Conditions by Neighborhood Income: The Picture in Massachusetts
This report from the Boton Fed describes credit conditions in Massachusetts in low- and moderate-income and middle- and high-income census tracts using a unique and nationally representative database of all individuals who have a credit history. The analysis highlights the differences in the percentage of individuals with credit accounts, median balances, monthly payments, delinquency rates, and credit scores in 2006 and 2012.
posted 04/30/2014 by Boston
Is Home Maintenance Contagious? Evidence from Boston
In disadvantaged neighborhoods, the condition of the housing stock can vary from block to block. On one block, homes appear well kept and in good condition, while on another, many homes show signs of physical distress. Since the blocks within the same neighborhood are often similar in terms of home values, what accounts for this pattern? And is there any contagion effect of home maintenance? Researchers at the Boston Fed examine this issue in several Boston neighborhoods in this report.
posted 04/30/2014 by Boston
Which Poor Neighborhoods Experienced Income Growth in Recent Decades?
Why has average income grown in some poor neighborhoods over the past 30 years and not in others? In exploring this question, researchers at the Cleveland Fed found that low-income neighborhoods that experienced large improvements in income over the past three decades tended to be located in large, densely populated metro areas that themselves grew in income and population. Residential sorting—changes in population and demographics within neighborhoods—could help to explain this relationship.
posted 04/30/2014 by Cleveland
Estimating the Impact of Fast-Tracking Foreclosures in Ohio and Pennsylvania
Many signs in the housing market seem to be pointing the right way, except for the amount of time loans are spending in the foreclosure process. Foreclosure fast-tracks for vacant homes in foreclosure may help reverse that trend. This Commentary by researchers at the Cleveland Fed examines the savings Ohio and Pennsylvania might gain if they adopted such measures.
posted 04/30/2014 by Cleveland
Urban Decline in Rust-Belt Cities
Many Rust-Belt cities have seen almost half their populations move from inside the city borders to the surrounding suburbs and elsewhere since the 1970s. As populations shifted, neighborhoods changed—in their average incomes, in their educational profiles, and in housing prices. But these shifts did not affect neighborhoods at the same rates. Recent research has uncovered some of the patterns characterizing the process.
posted 04/30/2014 by Cleveland
Mortgage Performance Summaries
This series of reports, produced by the Richmond Fed's Research and Community Development Departments, provides state-level analyses of housing markets, and the composition and performance of mortgage markets in the Fifth Federal Reserve District. The reports are updated quarterly.
posted 04/25/2014 by Richmond
Foreclosure Resource Center
The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond's Foreclosure Resource Center provides a comprehensive list of both national and local foreclosure prevention information, resources and data.
posted 04/25/2014 by Richmond
REO & Vacant Properties: Strategies for Neighborhood Stabilization
The foreclosure crisis has caused the nation to grapple with scores of real-estate-owned, or REO, properties. These and other vacant properties erode the values of nearby homes, fracture neighborhood stability, and threaten to undo decades of economic progress made in communities across the country over the past 25 years. How big is the REO problem? How are communities, banks, and policymakers dealing with the challenge? Most important, what approaches are showing the most promise for success? Learn more in this collection of analyses and essays from the nation's housing and policy experts.
posted 04/25/2014 by Boston, Cleveland, Board of Governors
Hidden Counties: Rural Appalachia in the Fourth District States
Although not directly affected by the boom and bust of the housing market, Appalachia, and more specifically rural Appalachia, might be fighting the Great Recession's aftershocks for quite some time. This report from the Cleveland Fed examines data to learn how Appalachians in counties from Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania are currently faring. Have they lost what little ground they gained from the late 1970s to the early part of this decade?
posted 04/25/2014 by Cleveland
5th District Footprint: Recent Patterns in the Fifth District's Population Growth
The November 2013 issue of 5th District Foodprint looks at population growth in the Fifth District between 2007 and 2012 and describes the role of migration in these patterns.
posted 04/25/2014 by Richmond
5th District Footprint: Commuting Patterns in the Fifth District
The October 2013 issue of 5th District Footprint examines commuting patterns in Fifth Federal Reserve District counties. Daily population shifts due to commuting are especially prominent in counties surrounding major metropolitan areas.
posted 04/25/2014 by Richmond
Redefining Rust Belt: An Exchange of Strategies by the Cities of Baltimore, Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia
This publication summarizes the key themes from the first event in the Redefining "Rust Belt" series. The event engaged community leaders from the cities of Baltimore, Detroit, Cleveland and Philadelphia in a discussion of challenges and successful strategies in city revitalization efforts. The event was held by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, in collaboration with the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Cleveland and Philadelphia.
posted 04/25/2014 by Richmond
Green Bay Profile
This blog provides a synopsis of the city of Green Bay, Wisconsin, including why it was chosen to be part of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago's “Industrial Cities Initiative.”
posted 04/23/2014 by Chicago
The Enduring Challenge of Concentrated Poverty in America: Case Studies from Communities Across the U.S.
This collection of 16 case studies from across the United States includes two from the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland's Fourth District: the City of Cleveland’s urban, densely populated Central neighborhood and rural Martin County, Kentucky. On the surface, these two communities have little in common apart from high rates of poverty; their geographies, demographics, and histories point to two very different places. Despite the disparities, though, both communities face remarkably similar challenges to overcoming poverty.
posted 04/23/2014 by Cleveland
How the Boston Case Can Inform Neighborhood Stabilization Policy
How did the Neighborhood Stabilization Program play out in Boston? A research team at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston conducted a multi-method study of the impact of the Boston Neighborhood Stabilization Program effort. We found that the program properties were slower to be rehabilitated than a comparison group of non-program properties and that the program had very little impact on the physical or social conditions of the block. We conclude by offering some policy implications
posted 04/22/2014 by Boston
Bridges — Winter 2013-2014
Bridges is a quarterly review of regional community and economic development issues, projects and regulatory changes for practitioners from community-based organizations, as well as for CRA officers, academics and government officials. Feature articles in the Winter 2013-14 issue include: Family Scholar House: Educational Program Breaks Cycle of Poverty for Single Parents in Louisville; Health Around the Corner; Insight Park: Visioning for the Future of Oxford and Ole Miss; Anchor Institutions in the Mississippi Delta; Charter School Anchors St. Louis Neighborhood Revitalization; and more.
posted 04/21/2014 by St. Louis
NHS Community Banks Partnership Meeting Summary
This article provides a recap of the Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago (NHS) Annual Community Banks Partnership Meeting. The meeting brought together more than 60 representatives from area community banks, regulators, and industry partners to discuss the evolving landscape of community banking. This meeting was held April 30, 2013, at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.
posted 04/21/2014 by Chicago
Education Joins the Ranks of Top Concerns Facing Communities
What are the most pressing concerns facing stakeholders in the Fourth Federal Reserve District at the outset of 2014? A survey of Cleveland Fed stakeholders elicited comments on and rankings of current and emerging issues facing their communities, which are reported in the Bank's Issues and Insights publication. Our 2014 findings, for example, show education has joined the perennial top current concerns of jobs and vacant properties, while the top emerging concerns continue to revolve around jobs and government budgetary cuts.
posted 04/16/2014 by Cleveland
Manufacturing and Pollution: Trends in Old and New Industrial Centers
How have northern cities fared as they recover from the loss of manufacturing, at the same time working to reduce pollution and become more attractive places to live? This report examines trends in manufacturing and pollution in the traditional industrial centers of the Rust Belt and the newer centers that sprang up in the South over the past three decades.
posted 04/15/2014 by Cleveland
Social Ties, Space, and Resilience: Literature Review of Community Resilience to Disasters and Constituent Social and Built Environment Factors
Given the importance of resilience in promoting an effective recovery from severe natural disasters, the factors that contribute to such community resilience are of great interest to scholars and practitioners. The value of strong social networks in resilience is among the most oft-repeated lessons learned in recent scholarship. In this paper, Atlanta Fed research analyst Ann Carpenter examines the intersection of three connected threads in the literature to understand one particular aspect of resilience: how the built environment contributes to greater resilience by supporting and encouraging strong social networks.
posted 04/09/2014 by Atlanta
Bridges — Fall 2013
Bridges is a quarterly review of regional community and economic development issues, projects and regulatory changes for practitioners from community-based organizations, as well as for CRA officers, academics and government officials. Feature articles in the Fall 2013 issue include: Increasing Density: A Small-Town Approach to New Urbanism; Women Helping Women: Healing Hearts Bank at Redevelopment Opportunities for Women; The Graying of America: Preparing for What Comes Next and more.
posted 03/18/2014 by St. Louis
Surveying the Landscape: The Challenge of Affordable Housing in Texas
This issue of the Dallas Fed's Banking & Community Perspectives looks at challenges facing the affordable housing field in Texas, spotlighting underlying trends and new approaches to increasing availability.
posted 03/10/2014 by Dallas
Residential Migration, Entry, and Exit as Seen Through the Lens of Credit Bureau Data
This analysis of consumer credit bureau data by the Philadelphia Fed finds that between 2002 and 2010, the number and proportion of consumers with a credit report fell in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods and rose in higher-income neighborhoods, largely as a result of residential migration. The paper also finds slower growth in the credit bureau sample in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods during periods of credit contraction.
posted 02/19/2014 by Philadelphia
Foreclosure Investors in Suffolk County, MA
This report reviews foreclosure investor activity in Boston and the rest of Suffolk County, Massachusetts using data from 2007 to 2012. The author finds that 44% of the properties in the sample were purchased by buyers who appeared to be investors, and most purchased one to six properties. The data also indicate that investors are less reliant than other buyers on mortgage financing to purchase foreclosed properties.
posted 02/17/2014 by Boston
An Overview of the Nonprofit Foreclosure Counseling Industry in Philadelphia
This article examines the nonprofit foreclosure counseling industry in Philadelphia, including results from a survey of the city’s counseling agencies that highlights challenges the industry faces. Specifically, the paper discusses the industry’s structure, financial status, and requirements for funding. In addition, the survey results provide information on service delivery and monitoring, staffing, finances, investment priorities, and additional critical issues facing the industry.
posted 02/17/2014 by Philadelphia
In Philadelphia's Shadow: Small Cities in the Third Federal Reserve District
Published by the Philadelphia Fed, this report tracks the histories, current conditions, and trajectories of 13 small formerly industrial cities in the Third Federal Reserve District. Revitalization, reflected in both the social and economic well-being of the city’s population and the vitality of its housing market and neighborhoods, appears to hinge on connecting residents to regional job markets, tapping into regional housing demand, and growing new economic sectors capable of changing a city’s image and drawing strong private investment.
posted 02/17/2014 by Philadelphia
