A newly released study shows that a majority of the estimated 150,000 new jobs expected to be created in the Greater Des Moines area over the next two decades will be low- to moderate-paying, prompting the question: Will there be housing available in which the new workers can afford to live? The issue of how to provide affordable housing to current and future residents is one that is being asked across the United States. The Urban Land Institute’s Terwilliger Center for Housing and real estate consulting firm RCLCO just released a report that looks at the shortage of housing affordable to moderate-income homebuyers, including first-time buyers, and offers solutions to increase the supply, reports Brenda Richardson for Forbes. The report recommends solutions including building higher-density neighborhoods and creating townhouse, duplex and triplex communities, Richardson writes. “Homebuyers really want that walkability,” Christopher Ptomey, executive director of the ULI Terwilliger Center for Housing, says in the article: “They want to have shared outdoor spaces, they want to live in a community where they have access to the services, the retail, jobs, transportation and good schools. … And they are willing to accept smaller units, but they still want a high-quality finish in those units. So they are willing to sacrifice size for quality and location.” To read the entire report, click here.