Policy & Research

» Our Services & Programs » Policy & Research

Community Progress is at the forefront of policy development and practical research shaping national, state, and local responses to vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties. Since our inception, we have supported numerous policy reforms to help communities advance land banks, code enforcement, tax foreclosure and other tools that help drive equitable revitalization.

Through our policy and research work, we:
  • Deepen practitioners’ understanding of the challenges facing communities and the opportunities for reform through practical research,
  • Educate policymakers on the ways vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties harm personal and economic prosperity throughout the country, and disproportionately impact Black, Brown, Indigenous, and low-income populations,
  • Support the development or reform of policies that will create the effective, efficient, and equitable tools communities need to address vacant properties,
  • Advocate for essential funding resources communities need to equitably transition vacant underutilized spaces into vibrant places, particularly for low-income and communities of color, and
  • Build connections and networks with policy makers, practitioners, researchers, and nonprofit partners aimed at forging a stronger coalition of vacant property advocates across the nation.
Our approach to policy and research work is collaborative by design.

We are actively engaged with a wide range of national coalitions, ensuring that communities struggling with vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties have a voice in a variety of national policy initiatives. In addition to leading the Rental Research Community of Practice, we also partner with the following national coalitions:

To find out more about our policy and research work, contact Rob Finn, Director of Policy and Research at [email protected].