Editorial standards
A reference is only as good as its accuracy. Here is exactly how this one is made.
Sources come first
Every entry is built from primary sources wherever they exist: federal statute and regulations, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the IRS, the Census Bureau, the Congressional Research Service, state housing agencies, and court decisions. Where we rely on research or data from other organizations, we use established ones — such as Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies, the National Low Income Housing Coalition and the Urban Institute — and name them.
Every page lists the sources it was built from. Statistics always say what year they describe.
How entries are written and checked
Entries are researched and drafted with the help of AI tools working from the sources above. Each one is then checked by a separate reviewer — also AI-assisted — that re-opens the cited sources, verifies every date, number, law and program rule, and corrects or removes anything that cannot be confirmed. Nothing is published without at least one cited source, and claims that cannot be verified are cut rather than softened into vagueness.
We are open about this process because accuracy depends on it, and because readers deserve to know how a reference is made.
Neutrality
Housing policy involves real disagreements — about rent regulation, zoning, subsidies and more. We explain the main positions and the evidence for each, and we label emerging trends as trends rather than settled fact. The publisher, Little Living, builds affordable workforce housing, but this reference covers every approach fairly.
What we don't publish
- Invented quotes, or examples presented as real when they are hypothetical. Illustrations are always labeled.
- Income limits for specific places. These change every year, so we link to HUD's official lookup instead.
- Advice for an individual situation. This is educational information, not legal, tax or financial advice.
Updates and corrections
Each page shows when it was last updated. When laws or programs change, affected entries are revised. If you find an error, email gjm@littleliving.org; confirmed errors are corrected promptly.