{"product_id":"2940148311935","title":"Barriers to the Rehabilitation of Affordable Housing Volume I: Finding and Analysis","description":"The rehabilitation of affordable housing (hereinafter rehab or renovation) faces many barriers. It \u003cbr\u003eis concerned inherently with existing, typically older buildings, making the rehab process less \u003cbr\u003epredictable and in many ways more challenging than new construction. \u003cbr\u003eRehab faces a major economic barrier, namely the gap that often exists between the costs of \u003cbr\u003erenovation and the financial resources available for those buildings requiring improvement. Of \u003cbr\u003ethe $623 billion in rehab needed nationwide—a conservative estimate—$227 billion, or about \u003cbr\u003eone-third, is unaffordable without some measure of subsidy or other means of support (e.g., \u003cbr\u003eusing “sweat equity” or staggering the improvements over time). \u003cbr\u003eAccomplishing rehab also is a challenge. The development process can entail difficulties in \u003cbr\u003eacquiring properties, estimating costs, dealing with restrictive land-use requirements (e.g., \u003cbr\u003elimitations on mixed use and adaptive reuse), and other issues. The construction phase involves \u003cbr\u003eassembling qualified tradespeople and abiding by myriad codes regulating asbestos, construction, \u003cbr\u003efire safety, energy efficiency, historic preservation, lead paint, radon, and so on. Although \u003cbr\u003edevelopment and construction requirements are essential for the public’s welfare and in many \u003cbr\u003erespects foster rehab efforts (e.g., historic designation often encourages upgrading), they can be \u003cbr\u003echallenging. For example, trying to retrofit off-street parking in a building undergoing rehab \u003cbr\u003e(sometimes mandated by land-use regulations) or ensuring that a building meets all newconstruction standards (sometimes mandated by the building code) are significant difficulties. \u003cbr\u003eThe rehab barriers are of a diverse nature and encompass economic constraints, professional \u003cbr\u003einadequacies, regulatory and programmatic problems, and miscellaneous other issues. \u003cbr\u003eFurthermore, the specific incidence of the barriers varies by jurisdiction and project type. For \u003cbr\u003einstance, the building code can be a major problem in one city where archaic provisions prevail, \u003cbr\u003ebut only a minor issue in a community that enjoys more flexible codes and code administrators. \u003cbr\u003eThe barriers to rehab are far from insurmountable. The roughly $150 billion of renovation done \u003cbr\u003eannually in the United States attests to this. The public and private sectors are working together \u003cbr\u003eon many fronts to resolve lingering issues. More rehab-friendly building code regulations have \u003cbr\u003ebeen adopted in New Jersey, Maryland, and other states. Banks have become more receptive to \u003cbr\u003efinancing renovation. There are promising collaborations between the public sector and industry \u003cbr\u003ethat are improving the collection of data on rehab so that it can be better understood. \u003cbr\u003eNonetheless, many challenges remain.","brand":"ReadCycle","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47079019315440,"sku":"2940148311935","price":2.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940148311935_p0.jpg?v=1763701225","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940148311935","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}