July 1, 2026
As housing shortages intensify across the country, local home repair programs are receiving renewed consideration for the role they may play in preserving affordable homeownership and wealth among low-income homeowners – particularly homeowners of color. In response, cities are increasingly working to better coordinate and scale local programs and integrate them into broader housing strategies. In doing so, many are confronting long-standing challenges, as existing home repair systems are often under-resourced, highly fragmented, and administratively complex.
To learn how cities from the Lab’s Home Repair Community of Practice are implementing innovations in their local home repair programs join the Housing Solutions Lab on Thursday, July 16, at 12 p.m. ET for Scaling Impact: Lessons from 14 Cities on Local Home Repair Programs, an hour-long webinar.
In this session, Jess Wunsch, Director of City Engagement at the Housing Solutions Lab, will share findings from our latest Policy Insight, Strengthening local home repair systems: Lessons from 14 U.S. cities and counties. Drawing on a comprehensive scan of over 40 programs from 14 jurisdictions in the Lab’s Home Repair Community of Practice, the webinar will cover:
- The state of the field: An overview of existing research on home repair.
- Scaling programs and improving coordination: Emerging strategies to navigate the common barriers cities face while growing and better aligning their programs.
- Actionable program models: A distillation of key takeaways from over 40 programs across 14 cities and counties, offering replicable lessons and guidance to help you effectively design or strengthen your own home repair initiatives.
A panel discussion and Q&A will follow, featuring two participants in the Lab’s Home Repair Community of Practice: Megan McGinn, Housing Stability Manager at the Louisville Office of Housing and Community Development, and Nefertitti Jackmon, Community Displacement Prevention Officer at the Austin Housing Department, who will share how they are implementing innovative solutions in their communities.
Want to join the 2026 Home Repair Peer Network?
The Lab also seeks expressions of interest from cities working to strengthen local home repair programs for its third Home Repair Peer Network by July 24, 2026. Learn more about the opportunity here.
Please reach out to Jess Wunsch (jess.wunsch@nyu.edu) with any questions about the webinar or peer learning opportunity.