All solutions
Legalize housing
Housing near jobs
Require job-rich, transit-rich areas to allow the homes their workers need.
Written by YIMBY LawWhat it does
Promote housing in and near employment centers and transit, so residents can live near high-opportunity areas with real access to jobs and transportation.
Example legislation
Bills that carry this policy, passed and in progress.
Ties federal transit funding to pro-housing zoning around stations.
Build More Housing Near Transit Act
Why localities should pursue housing near jobs
The problem
The places with the strongest housing demand — commercial districts and transit corridors — are often the places where homes are hardest to build. Workers commute long distances from where housing is allowed to where the jobs are, driving traffic, emissions, and turnover.
The fix
Rezone commercial and transit-adjacent districts for significantly higher-density housing, approved administratively against objective standards. Communities become more livable when residents can live, work, and play locally — and employers get a stable workforce that can afford to stay.
“”Housing near commercial centers makes work accessible to the employees who power them.
YIMBY Law
Crafting the policy
What separates versions that produce homes from versions that produce headlines.
Must include
- By-right multifamily development
- Transit-oriented development zoning
- Streamlined approval
- Reduced or eliminated parking requirements
- Increased height and stories
- Public-private partnerships
Watch out for
- Affordability mandates
- Parking requirements
- Height limitations
Why each one matters
After it passes
What to watch so the law turns into homes.
- 1
Set a clearly defined, near-future effective date
- 2
Create enforcement mechanisms with an appeals process or legal recourse for denied projects
- 3
Enable TOD zoning that lets localities require higher density near transit
- 4
Include attorney's-fee provisions to deter frivolous litigation
Make the case
What to say at public comment, in a letter to council, or to a neighbor.
Talking points
Say them at public comment, put them in a letter to your council, or send them to a neighbor. Copy any one.
Likely allies
The groups that tend to show up for it.
6 likely allies
- Chambers of commerce & regional businesses
- Economic development authorities
- Environmental groups
- Home builder associations
- Strong Towns
- Transit advocates
Wins & momentum
Where it has already passed.
1win since 2026
- 1
- 1
Related primers
Bringing this to your city council?
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