by Maya Brennan, Emily Peiffer, and Kimberly Burrowes

Read the full article from Housing Matters here.

“In the early 20th century, many communities explicitly used zoning ordinances to racially segregate neighborhoods. By the late 20th century, civil rights legislation outlawed overt housing discrimination. But those explicit racial barriers were quickly replaced by subtler methods. Even today, exclusionary zoning policies that restrict lower-cost or higher-density housing options—such as requirements for large minimum lot sizes and prohibitions of multifamily housing—limit racial and economic diversity and raise housing costs.”