Shelterforce

Shelterforce

Shelterforce is nonprofit news publication that covers affordable housing in the U.S., as well as community planning, racial equity, community development, and more. Here you can listen to authors read their latest Shelterforce articles, as well as our interviews with folks on the ground. For more, go to shelterforce.org. To support our nonprofit newsroom, make a tax-deductible donation at https://shelterforce.org/donate.

Episodes

August 15, 2026 14 mins
Chicago funded affordable housing for years without verifying or tracking its accessibility. Disabled residents paid the price—and after a recent settlement, the city will have to as well. Shelterforce's Re'Dreyona Walker reports. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/06/courts-to-city-housing-depts-pay-for-accessibility-up-front-or-pay-more-later/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
How can impact investing be an effective affordable housing partner? CDFI leaders and affordable housing providers point to the importance of redefining risk so that returns to communities are at least as important as returns to investors. Speakers include: —Betty Francisco, CEO of Boston Impact Initiative —Kate Khatib, co-executive director of Seed Commons, —Shelby King, Shelterforce's investigative reporter &...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Elders are turning personal housing struggles into collective action, and challenging assumptions about who leads housing justice movements. Shelterforce's Sandra Larson reports. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/13/older-adults-are-fighting-for-housing-justice-and-they-refuse-to-be-pushed-aside/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
The roots of housing insecurity can be traced back decades to discriminatory policies and practices that have deprived Black seniors of the wealth that often provides stability in old age. Reporting by Amanda Abrams, a freelance reporter for Shelterforce. Read by John Ludas, an audio producer for Shelterforce. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/11/for-older-black-homeowners-a-lifetime-of-housing-discrimination...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Mondragón Cooperative Corporation, based in Spain, is a 70,000-member worker cooperative network. In May, it sent three representatives to the U.S. as part of an effort to build an international alliance of like-minded “social economy” enterprises. Shelterforce's Steve Dubb reports. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/29/worlds-largest-worker-cooperative-network-seeks-new-allies/ Music by ℗ ComaSt...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Federal accessibility requirements are only as effective as the local governments responsible for enforcing them. Michael Allen, a disability rights attorney, reflects on cases in Chicago and Los Angeles, and why they should serve as a warning to cities nationwide. Music by ℗ ComaStudio Read the story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/05/the-accessibility-rules-were-there-the-enforcement-wasnt/ This article is part of Shelter...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Aging safely in rural communities depends on a fragile interconnected network of housing, healthcare, transportation, and local support. Shelterforce's Franklin Schneider reports. Read the story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/08/04/the-wobbly-infrastructure-behind-aging-in-rural-communities/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Private equity firms are major players in the rental housing market. Here's how private equity ownership works, how it harms tenants, and the organizing strategies and policy responses that could help. This piece is read by Caroline Nagy, the associate director of housing policy at Americans for Financial Reform (AFR). Nagy co-wrote this piece with her AFR colleague Aditi Sen. Read the full piece at https://shelterforce.org/2026/...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Seniors have long been more likely to own than rent. But the number of older renters is growing, and they’re especially vulnerable to rising housing costs, inaccessible buildings, weak tenant protections, and homelessness. Here’s why the stakes are higher later in life. Shelterforce's Frances Nguyen reports. Music by ℗ ComaStudio Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/30/for-older-renters-the-housing...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Older homeowners often fall into a Catch-22: too much home equity to qualify for aid, but too little income to comfortably live in their homes. Some housing models aim to bridge that gap. Franklin Schneider reports for Shelterforce. Music by ℗ ComaStudio
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
In 2019 and 2023, Oregon passed two laws requiring city housing plans to affirmatively further fair housing. But rather than using maps to inform policy, many Oregon cities are refraining from mapping to avoid confronting patterns of segregated housing. Jennifer Bragar, president of Housing Land Advocates, explains. Bragar co-wrote this piece with John Miller, executive director of Fair Housing Council of Oregon. Music by ℗ Coma...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Helping older adults remain in their homes has become a policy goal across the country. Making it happen is far more complicated. Reporting by Sandra Larson, a freelance reporter. This story is read by John Ludas, Shelterforce's audio producer. Read the story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/22/everyone-supports-aging-in-place-but-can-we-actually-deliver-it/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
The debate over aging in place is shifting from how to keep older adults in their homes to what kinds of communities allow people to age safely, affordably, and with dignity. Shelterforce's Frances Nguyen reports. Read the full story at https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/21/housing-for-an-older-america-from-aging-in-place-to-aging-in-community/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Stability in older age depends on a host of overlapping conditions being met. Our new Under the Lens series explores those conditions, how to achieve them, and what it means when our housing system isn’t built for a population that’s growing older. Shelterforce's Lillian Ortiz explains what you can expect over the next several weeks. Read the full editor's note here: https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/20/the-population...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
The Federal Housing Finance Agency is proposing to significantly change how it enforces Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s duty to serve underserved mortgage markets. Comments from the public are due July 24. Doug Ryan, vice president of housing policy at Grounded Solutions Network, explains. Read Ryan's op-ed at https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/17/proposed-federal-rule-would-undercut-fannie-and-freddies-duty-to-serve-underserved-...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
A call for research proposals on reducing housing demand suggests a radical and troubling shift that may be coming in housing policy. This op-ed was written by Alan Mallach, a senior fellow at the Center for Community Progress. It is read by Miriam Axel-Lute, Shelterforce's editor-in-chief. Read the full op-ed at https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/13/should-everyone-have-a-decent-home-obscure-hud-document-suggests-no/ Music by ℗ C...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
There is a lot that can be done to advance housing and community investment at the local and state level. This is the perfect moment to do it. This Shelterforce webinar explored some of the many ways that local and state governments can independently take create action to advance affordable housing and healthy communities. The four panelists discussed reining in corporate power and enforcing anti-trust laws, instituting public ban...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Fair housing law has never been easy to enforce. But HUD's proposal to eliminate the use of disparate impact analysis will remove another crucial tool for doing so. Amber Banks, the president and CEO of the African American Alliance of CDFI CEOs, explains. Read the full piece at https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/08/how-hud-is-seeking-to-make-fighting-housing-discrimination-even-harder/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
A proposed HUD rule that would allow housing agencies and subsidized housing owners to impose work requirements and time limits on tenants has drawn nearly 2,000 public comments, most opposing changes that advocates say could threaten housing stability for millions. Erik Gartland, a research analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, explains. Read the piece at https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/07/huds-work-requirement-...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
A proposed rule from the Office of Management and Budget would facilitate political interference in federal grant disbursements across all agencies. Alexandra Gallo, former special advisor at the EPA, explains. Read the full piece at https://shelterforce.org/2026/07/01/federal-grant-rule-change-threatens-community-access-to-public-funds/ Music by ℗ ComaStudio
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played

Popular Podcasts

    Betrayal Weekly is back for a new season. Every Thursday, Betrayal Weekly shares first-hand accounts of broken trust, shocking deceptions, and the trail of destruction they leave behind. Hosted by Andrea Gunning, this weekly ongoing series digs into real-life stories of betrayal and the aftermath. From stories of double lives to dark discoveries, these are cautionary tales and accounts of resilience against all odds. From the producers of the critically acclaimed Betrayal series, Betrayal Weekly drops new episodes every Thursday. If you would like to share your story, you can reach out to the Betrayal Team by emailing them at betrayalpod@gmail.com and follow us on Instagram at @betrayalpod and @glasspodcasts. Please join our Substack for additional exclusive content, curated book recommendations, and community discussions. Sign up FREE by clicking this link Beyond Betrayal Substack. Join our community dedicated to truth, resilience, and healing. Your voice matters! Be a part of our Betrayal journey on Substack.

    Stuff You Should Know

    If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.

    Dateline NBC

    Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com

    The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show

    The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.

    The Joe Rogan Experience

    The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.

Advertise With Us
Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2026 iHeartMedia, Inc.

  • Help
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • AdChoicesAd Choices