Special Briefing on Addressing the Housing Crisis: Innovative Solutions from Across America

A nationwide housing supply shortage is shaping local and state responses to mounting affordability pressures across the U.S.. For a discussion of the economic, fiscal, and policy drivers of housing affordability and the strategies states and localities are pursuing to expand housing access, Penn IUR and the Volcker Alliance convened a panel of housing finance, policy, and urban development experts for “Special Briefing on Addressing the Housing Crisis: Innovative Solutions from across America” on February 19, 2026.

William Glasgall, Penn IUR Fellow and Public Finance Adviser at the Volcker Alliance, and Susan Wachter, Co-Director of Penn IUR, co-hosted the Special Briefing. 

The panel included

• Hannah Blitzer, Housing Sector Lead, S&P Global Ratings

• Eric Goldywn, Program Director and Clinical Assistant Professor, Transportation and Land-Use, Marron Institute of Urban Management, New York University

• Laurie Goodman, Institute Fellow and Founder of the Housing Finance Policy Center, The Urban Institute

• Paul Steenhausen, Principal Fiscal & Policy Analyst, California Legislative Analyst’s Office

This briefing is the latest in a series of sixty-minute online conversations on public finance featuring experts from the national research networks of the Volcker Alliance and Penn IUR, along with other leading academics, economists, and federal, state, and local leaders. 

Special Briefings are made possible by funding from The Travelers Institute, the Volcker Alliance, and members of the Penn IUR Advisory Board. Recordings of the entire Special Briefings series are available on the Volcker Alliance or Penn IUR websites. 

Be sure to subscribe to the Special Briefing podcast, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, TuneIn, iHeart Radio and more. 

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