Review by Booklist Review
In the U.S., homeownership is often viewed as a lifelong aspiration, equated with owning a piece of the American Dream. However, racial and class discrimination have excluded so many from achieving it. In the early twentieth century, segregation and redlining disenfranchised African Americans. The Civil Rights Act of 1968, which prohibited various forms of housing discrimination, expanded homeownership, but progress in some states has been slow due to economic bias in the form of exclusionary zoning laws. Lower-income families are often prevented from moving to the suburbs by a dearth of affordable housing. And a lack of mobility can have a lingering, compounding effect for families over generations. Kahlenberg (Tough Liberal, 2007), a fellow at the Progressive Policy Institute, uses a nuanced approach as he deftly scrutinizes the often-controversial topic of housing development and the colluding forces that exclude people from homeownership. His evenhanded perspective finds fault on both sides of the political spectrum, making this a very worthy book of contemporary and historical relevance.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Kahlenberg (coauthor, A Smarter Charter), a researcher on education and housing policy, argues in this comprehensive study that "state-sponsored economic discrimination" has replaced racial discrimination as the main contributor to residential segregation in America. According to Kahlenberg, when affluent, often liberal communities prohibit accessory dwelling units, impose density restrictions, require housing to be built on large lots, set onerous parking requirements, and impose other "exclusionary zoning" regulations, they help maintain racial segregation and prevent lower-income families from moving into neighborhoods with good schools and into cities with employment opportunities. To remedy the problem, Kahlenberg advocates for the Economic Fair Housing Act, which would make it "illegal for government zoning to discriminate on the basis of income"; calls on the federal government to commit more money to subsidizing the construction of affordable housing; and draws hope from successful efforts in California, Oregon, and Charlotte, N.C., to replace single-family zoning with zoning that allows for multifamily housing units. Kahlenberg persuasively addresses concerns from both the right and the left, and stuffs the book with an abundance of research. It's a valuable guide to fixing one of America's most enduring social ills. Agent: Lisa Adams, Garamond. (July)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Provocative study of how institutional measures reinforce inequality of opportunity in housing and other aspects of daily life. Across the U.S., writes attorney and activist Kahlenberg, "zoning laws prohibit the construction of multifamily units" that are economically accessible to low-income families. Many municipalities issue regulations on minimum lot sizes, again sorting out the cash-poor who might be able to afford small homes on small pieces of land. The effect, Kahlenberg argues, is that, while to all superficial appearances overt racial discrimination is declining, economic discrimination is rising--and economic discrimination, of course, disproportionately affects minorities, and it's entirely legal. The result, one researcher concludes, is "incipient class apartheid." What the author calls "snob zoning" is an obstacle to equal opportunity: It not only blocks those of lesser means from large parts of any given community, but also discourages the ability to purchase a home and build the intergenerational wealth that comes from equity. Kahlenberg notes that districts with the highest rates of postwar Black migration are those with the most stringent regulations, as with one San Jose--area suburb that for years has forbidden anything but single-family-home construction. While the author allows that "some zoning regulations are essential" and that reforming discriminatory zoning laws is not the only remedy, it would make a good start, especially in a time when home ownership has lost some of its previous political clout. As evidence, Kahlenberg cites Trump-era cuts in mortgage-interest deductions even as Trump warned that Biden's policies, if elected, would "allow 'low-income housing' to 'invade' suburban neighborhoods." Suburban voters didn't bite, and the author holds out hope that they will be amenable to further zoning reforms that, as he notes, would have the effect of building more diverse communities, which would promote "a more cohesive, less polarized democracy." A thoughtful, worthy argument for fair-housing reforms that are truly fair. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
