State Affordable Housing Appeals Systems and Access to Opportunity: Evidence From the Northeastern United States

In many U.S. states, local governments exercise extensive control over land-use regulation. Much scholarly research indicates that local restrictions on multifamily residential development have contributed to rapid housing cost increases, particularly in the West Coast and the Northeast. Such evidence has led scholars and policymakers to advocate state intervention in local land-use regulation, in order to constrain local discretion over permitting multifamily housing. This article provides the most comprehensive comparison to date of housing outcomes associated with state affordable housing appeals systems (SAHASs) in the northeastern U.S. SAHASs enable developers of certain below-market-rate and mixed-income housing projects to request an override of local land-use regulation. We describe the essential attributes of a SAHAS and provide empirical data to assess housing outcomes in the four northeastern states where such systems have been adopted – Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Rhode Island. Our findings are consistent with previous claims that a SAHAS can increase access to opportunity, and that the Massachusetts system has been particularly effective. We conclude by discussing features of the Massachusetts system that may explain its relative efficacy, and we describe how state and federal policymakers could improve data collection practices related to state intervention in local land-use regulation.