The tool, called the Affordable Housing Needs Assessment Tool (AHNAT), takes into account a variety of factors, including the city's population, income levels, housing costs, and the availability of affordable housing.
"The goal of this tool is to help cities identify and address their affordable housing needs," said Karen Chapple, professor of city and regional planning at UC Berkeley and lead author of the study describing the tool. "By understanding the scope of the need, cities can develop more effective affordable housing policies and programs."
AHNAT is a user-friendly, web-based tool that can be accessed by any city or town in the United States. The tool walks users through a series of steps, asking them to input data about their city's population, income levels, housing costs, and the availability of affordable housing.
Based on this data, the tool then generates an estimate of the number of affordable housing units that the city needs to build.
The tool also provides users with a variety of resources and recommendations for developing affordable housing policies and programs.
"We hope that this tool will be a valuable resource for cities as they grapple with the challenge of providing affordable housing for their residents," said Chapple.
