A century ago, families of four settled into single-family homes on large lots with back and front yards. That\u2019s not the case today, said Alex Horowitz with the Pew Charitable Trusts at Dallas\u2019 second annual housing summit Friday. Developers, residents, city officials, and housing experts attended the event at the University of North Texas at Dallas to address ways the city can grow without encouraging displacement \u2014 a topic that has invited community consternation and celebration, often in the same breath.<\/p>\n
Horowitz, who served as the keynote speaker, said the average household these days is composed of two and a half residents, which means the current housing stock, dominated by detached single-family homes, is a mismatch with the population it intends to serve.<\/p>\n
Panels during the summit targeted several questions about the future of housing in Dallas. Can single-family housing co-exist with multifamily housing? Is a new state law that offers a pathway to convert commercially zoned properties into multifamily housing by right the boon Dallas had been waiting for or is the bane of a neighborhood\u2019s existence? How does one develop underutilized, vacant lots in a city that\u2019s filled with them?<\/p>\n
And though Dallas was one of the few jurisdictions in the country to successfully add housing to its stock, the city still faces challenges. Nationally, from 2017 to 2024, rents rose 18 percentage points faster in the lowest-income neighborhoods than in the highest-income during that time.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a big gap between high-income and low-income areas,\u201d Horowitz said. In Dallas, the two dominant types of constructions are apartments and single-family homes. The \u201cmissing middle\u201d \u2014 such as townhomes, duplexes, accessory-dwelling units, and homes on smaller lots \u2014 would cost less to construct and produce, and could serve working professionals.<\/p>\n
Half the renters in the country spend over a third of their income on rent, and a quarter spend over 50%. \u201cThis is not historically normal. In the past, rents consumed a much smaller share of income,\u201d Horowitz said.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s bad when it comes to homeownership, too. Horowitz said zoning restrictions and unaffordability often push high-income renters to middle-income neighborhoods. What happens next? Residents from those neighborhoods then search for housing in areas they deem affordable, and many move into low-income neighborhoods.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere do low-income renters go? Nowhere to go. We see displacement go up. We see homelessness go up. But most commonly, we see people absorbing steep rent increases that they really can\u2019t afford,\u201d Horowitz said.<\/p>\n
Among the four largest cities in the U.S. \u2014 New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Houston \u2014 Houston is the only city that has been able to keep Black residents in their city. Chicago, on the other hand, lost a quarter of its Black residents between 2000 and 2021.<\/p>\n
Houston added 33% homes to its stock, compared to the average of 14% across the other three cities. \u201cIt\u2019s not rhetoric that avoids displacement,\u201d Horowitz said. \u201cIt\u2019s allowing enough homes for everybody in a market.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got a racial wealth gap in this country. When there are too few homes, the people with the most resources win, and the people with the fewest resources lose. It doesn\u2019t have to be this way,\u201d he said. \u201cThere can be enough for everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brita Andercheck, the city\u2019s chief data officer, told council members last year that single-family parcels make up 35% of the city\u2019s land use but only 4% of the city\u2019s tax base. In comparison, mixed-use parcels make up 0.2% of the city\u2019s tax base and contribute 40%.<\/p>\n
The City Council approved plans such as ForwardDallas, a land-use guide to development across various parts of the city. It also approved parking reforms to encourage more walkable patterns in the city and removed regulatory language that not only made housing expensive, it also made it untenable. City officials are revisiting the zoning code that hasn\u2019t changed since the \u201960s and the \u201980s, when automobiles drove city planning.<\/p>\n
Gloria Ardilla, with the Dallas Free Press and Josephine Torres Cultural and Community Center, asked the audience how many people had heard of Trinity Groves. Some raised their hands. Ardilla said Trinity Groves was one piece of a larger, historic neighborhood called La Bajada.<\/p>\n
Ardilla called for preservation and tools to let the community decide the future of the neighborhood they grew up in. \u201cWe have to be intentional about creating the change that we\u2019re trying to create because otherwise, you can do all these plans, you can create all these policies, you can create all these opportunities, and nothing\u2019s ever going to come the way you intended it to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
She didn\u2019t quite agree with Horowitz. \u201cHe\u2019s saying the answer is making more houses \u2014 look, that hasn\u2019t worked always. That hasn\u2019t worked in all these places,\u201d she said, recalling the displacement of West Dallas residents.<\/p>\n
Ardilla\u2019s perspective in the marketplace has always been reflective of a separation between what makes sense from an academic and data perspective, and what is felt and experienced on the ground. Ardilla later said housing experts could all learn from each other. \u201cWe need to meet in the middle,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The housing challenges in Dallas are complex and multifaceted. The city needs to find a balance between growth and displacement, and between single-family housing and multifamily housing. The city officials, developers, and community members need to work together to create a more affordable and inclusive housing market.<\/p>\n
Q: What is the average household size in Dallas?<\/p>\n
A: The average household size in Dallas is 2.5 residents.<\/p>\n
Q: What is the main challenge in the housing market in Dallas?<\/p>\n
A: The main challenge is the rising rents and unaffordability of housing, particularly for low-income residents.<\/p>\n
Q: What is the solution to the housing challenges in Dallas?<\/p>\n
A: The solution is to create more affordable housing options, such as townhomes, duplexes, and accessory-dwelling units, and to allow for more mixed-use development.<\/p>\n
Q: How can the city prevent displacement of low-income residents?<\/p>\n
A: The city can prevent displacement by providing more affordable housing options, preserving existing affordable housing, and implementing policies that protect tenants\u2019 rights.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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