Publications

Vermont was placed among states with the fewest apartments available for deeply low-income renters by a recent study from the National Low-Income Housing Coalition.  For every 100 renters in the state, only 11 units are affordable and available to renters making less than 15% of the area median income, the researchers estimated.

The goals for green building are no longer low energy but net-zero energy use. The New New Net Zero, by William Maclay and Maclay Architects, features several prominent Vermont buildings and homes to illustrate the possibilities of net-zero design and construction.

The Vermont Department of Public Service is currently in the process of working with stakeholders to update the Vermont Residential and Commercial Energy Code. An updated version of the proposed Code will be made available soon.

There will be a public meeting held in September with an additional comment period of three weeks for those who wish to provide further input into the process based upon the revised draft.

A new report finds high rates of discrimination in Vermont's rental housing market based on race, color, national origin, disability, and minor children.

The report describes the results of 260 paired tests conducted in 2012 and 2013 by the Housing Discrimination Law Project of Vermont Legal Aid.

In a jam-packed hour Friday, Upper Valley leaders received the low down on the latest residential real estate market conditions facing the region.  A mismatch between the housing stock and changing needs and preferences of residents, University of New Hampshire’s Dennis Delay told the group, is likely to act as a drag on economic growth in coming years.

VHFA turns the big 4-0 today!  On April 11, 1974, the Agency was created by the General Assembly and signed into law by Governor Thomas P. Salmon.  Since then, VHFA has:

Ever wonder what can be done at the municipal level to improve housing affordability?  VHFA recently expanded the Vermont Housing Data website to include a page to answer just this question.

Thanks to the recent development of a menu of indicators and targets by the Vermont Agency of Human Services and the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission, describing how Vermonters are doing has become easier.

Vermonters pay property taxes of 1.66% of their home values on average, according to a new report prepared by the Tax Policy Center.  This places the state firmly in the top ten, which also includes Connecticut, Illinois, Michigan, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Texas, and Wisconsin.

Vermont’s “difficult to develop” areas under the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit provisions have been revised to include all counties with the exception of Addison, Orleans, Caledonia and Essex for 2014.