Housing near jobs

Promote housing in and near employment centers and transit, so residents can live near high-opportunity areas with real access to jobs and transportation.

Legalize housingUpdated Feb 2026

Why it matters

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.

The misconception to defuse early: More homes near job centers doesn't mean more congestion — it means shorter trips. Concentrating housing where the jobs and transit already are reduces sprawl, commute times, and vehicle emissions.

Craft the policy

What separates versions that produce homes from versions that produce headlines.

Include

By-right multifamily development
Zoning that approves multifamily housing administratively when it meets objective standards — certainty for builders, lower financing costs.
Example language: “…multifamily residential uses [on] all land contained in a commercial or business zoning district.” — Virginia HB 816
Transit-oriented development zoning
Permit greater density, height, and mixed-use housing within walking distance of transit hubs — maximizing the transit investment and cutting household transportation costs.
Example language: “A housing development project… within [a] specified distance of [a] transit stop [shall] be [an] allowed use.” — California SB 79
Streamlined approval
Modernize development review to reduce delay and uncertainty — predictability is what lowers construction costs.
Example language: “…housing development… [as a] use by right… [subject to] streamlined, ministerial review.” — California AB 2011
Reduced or eliminated parking requirements
Parking adds $35,000–$38,000 per unit — about 8% of total project cost. Ease or eliminate mandates near transit to encourage density and walkability.
Example language: “…prohibit [a] minimum automobile parking requirement… located within one-half mile of public transit.” — California AB 2097
Increased height and stories
Greater height spreads fixed costs across more homes — often the difference in feasibility, especially for affordable housing on high-value land.
Public-private partnerships
Partnerships close funding gaps, unlock capital, and secure long-term affordability in high-demand areas — like Charlotte's $50M housing bond (2022).

Avoid

Affordability mandates
Inclusionary zoning requirements make many projects financially impossible to construct.
Parking requirements
Minimums burden renters and homeowners with inflated costs.
Height limitations
Caps directly restrict the homes buildable on high-value, transit-adjacent land — exactly where demand and infrastructure already exist.

After it passes — implementation checklist

1Set a clearly defined, near-future effective date
2Create enforcement mechanisms with an appeals process or legal recourse for denied projects
3Enable TOD zoning that lets localities require higher density near transit
4Include attorney's-fee provisions to deter frivolous litigation

Make the case

Talking points

Housing near commercial centers makes work accessible to the employees who power them.
Living closer to work means less traffic and shorter commutes for everyone.
Concentrating homes in urban job centers reduces sprawl and vehicle emissions.

Likely allies — and why they show up

Chambers of commerce & regional businesses: Workforce stability: better recruiting, less turnover
Economic development authorities: Housing is the infrastructure jobs run on
Transit advocates: Riders come from station-area homes
Home builder associations: Certainty and density make projects pencil
Environmental groups: Less sprawl, fewer vehicle miles
Strong Towns: Productive land use in the places already built

Wins & momentum

2026Virginia
Chapters advocated a housing-near-jobs bill in the General Assembly; it fell short this session — returning in 2027
YIMBY-backed

Related endorsements

When legislation carries this policy, our members vote on endorsing it — policy work and electoral work reinforcing each other.

Endorsed · 2025 federal slate

Build More Housing Near Transit Act

Federal · 119th Congress

Ties federal transit funding to pro-housing zoning around stations.

Candidates who champion this policy appear in our voter guides

Bringing this to your city council?

You don't have to make the case alone. Our chapters have passed policies like this before — join one, or start one, and bring the movement with you.

Become a member Find your chapter