Earlier this month, the National Apartment Association (NAA) hosted the second annual Rental Housing Advocacy and Legal Summit (RHALS) in Irving, Texas. The second annual summit united advocacy and legal professionals from across the country to discuss the most pressing industry challenges and trends.
Here are some key themes and takeaways from this year’s RHALS.
Zoning Reform as Keynote Address
On the first morning of the summit, attendees heard from keynote speaker Nolan Gray, Research Director and land-use expert for California’s “Yes In My Backyard” (YIMBY) Movement.
Gray – a seasoned researcher and former city planner in New York – focused his keynote session on many of the findings from his latest book, “Arbitrary Lines: How Zoning Broke the American City and How To Fix It.” Given audience participation and feedback, the need for real policy solutions to help address a shortage of housing – at all price points and in communities across the country – was evident.
Gray’s address stressed the need for cities to rethink their approach to zoning in order to address a shortage of apartment homes to both increase the supply of housing and ease affordability challenges. He outlined strategic policy solutions to this problem including legalizing apartments near transit, eliminating minimum parking requirements and minimum lot sizes and streamlining the permitting process to incentivize and speed up development of new multifamily housing. NAA will continue to work with its affiliate network to promote responsible and sustainable solutions to address housing affordability, including zoning reform.
Breakouts Cover Latest Trends
Throughout the three-day event, breakout sessions focused on the latest trends and challenges facing the rental housing industry in both the legal and advocacy spaces. Attendees had the chance to hear directly from peers and subject matter experts on potential solutions. Key areas of focus included:
- Application fraud
- Rent control and preemption
- Combatting the narrative on so-called “junk” fees
- Building codes
- Crime-free housing
- Building effective advocacy programs
Additionally, several group sessions allowed attendees to directly share their local concerns, challenges and advocacy wins amongst peers.
Advocacy Runs Central
Running alongside this year’s summit, NAA’s inaugural Advocacy Academy trained a total of 24 rising industry advocates in the core skills of effective rental housing advocacy. In addition to attending RHALS general and breakout sessions, NAA Advocacy Academy participants received direct training on developing advocacy networks, effective strategies for building relationships with policymakers, using the media to advance advocacy goals and more.
Read more about NAA’s Inaugural Advocacy Academy
What’s Next
NAA thanks our 2024 RHALS sponsors – Real Strategies and Quorum – for their incredible support of the event.
Be sure to save the date for 2025 RHALS, July 30 – August 1st, 2025, in Denver, Colo. RHALS offers attendees the opportunity to discuss and engage with the trends, threats and challenges facing the rental housing industry. Attendees may earn CLE credits from the opportunity. It is a must-attend event for all industry professionals seeking to stay informed and prepared to contend with the ever-evolving world of rental housing law and regulation.