The Housing Crisis: Luxury Apartments vs. Affordable Housing for Families

While millennials have been credited with accelerating urban revival, many are now leaving cities to raise families due to a lack of family-oriented housing options. Even in places that have loosened zoning rules and authorized new housing construction, the overwhelming majority of new units are studios or one- and two-bedroom apartments, built with singles, childless couples, and adult roommates in mind. Advocates for more housing say that reforming zoning is only the first step toward building cities that house more people, and that regulatory barriers such as building codes and minimum lot sizes must also be addressed.