The lowest-income families in the nation had an even more difficult time in 2008 finding affordable housing.

That's the conclusion of the National Low Income Housing Coalition's (NLIHC) analysis of 2008 American Community Survey data.

For every 100 extremely low-income households — those earning 30% or less of their area median income — there were 37 affordable rental units in 2008. That number is down from 39 the previous year.

Put another way, the shortage of afffordable units for these households grew from 2.7 million in 2007 to 3.1 million in '08.

The Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC) is looking for comments on its 2011 plan.

You can sign up to receive drafts of the plan as they're written, so you can provide comments to help shape the final document: Go to the CCRPC Web site and complete the form.

Initial comments are being taken through Dec. 23.

The 2010 Subsidized Housing Certification Application (PDF) is now available for download from VHFA.

This document is required for owners/managers of subsidized housing who wish to have their buildings taxed at the lower "homestead" rate.

Deadline for the application is Feb. 22, 2010.

Many more details on Act 68, the 2003 legislation that categorized all buildings as either "homestead" or "non-homestead" properties, are available at vhfa.org.

Vermont's Lead in Consumer Products Law (Act 193) takes effect Jan. 1., limiting the amount of lead that can be in certain plumbing supplies sold in Vermont.

If you'll be installing plumbing in your home — or plan to construct single- or multi-family housing in Vermont — it's important you understand the new law.

As of the New Year, pipes, fittings and fixtures used to transport or dispense water for human consumption cannot exceed a weighted average of 0.25 percent for fixtures and 0.20 percent for solder or flux.