Ongoing research · Housing

The housing crisis, tracked in real time

Every month since February 2023 we've published a new read on rental housing — rent burden, evictions, who owns the buildings, household debt, and the capital moving underneath it all. Grounded in Hampton Roads, following the story wherever it leads: statehouses, capital markets, Washington. New research lands monthly.

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May 2026 · Latest6 min read

Strait to the Pump: Mapping Rising Gas Prices

More than 60% live in a neighborhood where public transit cannot reach a single job in 45 minutes.

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Mar 20266 min read

America, Exhausted

Mapping the country's chronic sleep deprivation.

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Jan 20266 min read

The Great Housing Decoupling

Where what we build and what we pay no longer match.

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Jan 20264 min read

How a Handful of Firms Drive Evictions

The latest on eviction data from Virginia.

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Jan 20263 min read

Deluge Vu

Resilience, but not for everyone. A quick update to the redevelopment of Young Terrace & Calvert Square.

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Oct 20253 min read

Mapping the Health Care Subsidy Cliff

A new CityWork map shows ACA health care subsidies across the country by ZIP Code. See how much help your area gets and what's at stake if subsidies end.

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Aug 20256 min read

Medicaid Cuts in 3 Charts

Washington is scaling back Medicaid through tougher eligibility, work requirements, and cost-sharing. What does it mean for Coastal Virginia?

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May 20256 min read

Debt: The Last 3 Years

A look at credit-card and student-loan debt — who's benefiting from loan relief, and whether financial literacy is an excuse for lazy thinking.

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Apr 20256 min read

What the Market Meltdown Means for Renters

Notes from a haruspex — divining what a recession might mean for renters across the country and in Hampton Roads.

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Feb 20257 min read

How Capital Moves Through Housing

Investors made millions. Renters faced 300 evictions. What do Hampton, 300 evictions, and the University of Illinois have in common?

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Jan 20259 min read

Liquid Cities: Landlord Atlas

It started in 2020 with a question: how much of Hampton Roads' apartments are owned by investors? After five years of data, we can finally say: at least 45%.

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Dec 20247 min read

Eviction Wrapped 2024

Our second annual look at the region's biggest evictors — just 50 companies, about 1% of landlords, drive nearly 25% of all eviction cases.

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Nov 20245 min read

Rent Debt + Norfolk's Noise Problem

A look at accumulating rent debt across the region, plus what noise complaints reveal about Norfolk's neighborhoods.

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Oct 20245 min read

October Rent + State of the Region + Chesapeake

Economists love this one weird trick to fix the housing market. Plus the latest numbers and a Chesapeake spotlight.

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Sep 20247 min read

Where Did Everyone from Tidewater Gardens Go? Part II

One-bedroom asking rent fell, everything else rose. Digging deeper on Tidewater relocation and race.

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Aug 20246 min read

Where Did Everyone from Tidewater Gardens Go?

A lot hinges on 1%. And for the first time since we've been tracking, asking rents fell.

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Jul 20246 min read

The Randomness of Rent

Is there any correlation between housing supply and rent — or is it basically like flipping a coin?

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Jul 20245 min read

Hampton Roads Rent — 5 Key Takeaways

Rents continue to rise as the region still struggles with affordable one-bedroom apartments.

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Jun 20246 min read

What Housing Shortage?

Continuing our series on whether building more supply lowers rent: is there really a housing shortage in Hampton Roads?

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May 20245 min read

Do Short-Term Rentals Raise Rent?

Do short-term rentals raise rents? Plus Hampton's new rules and the latest rental numbers.

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Apr 20246 min read

Can YIMBY Save Us?

Part two of our series on why building more housing doesn't guarantee lower rents — with the latest rental data.

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Mar 20246 min read

Hampton Roads Rent Report — February 2024

Norfolk released a new housing report. We launch a series on why building more housing alone won't save us.

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Feb 20245 min read

Hampton Roads Rent Report — January 2024

New year, same problems — and a deeper look at a worrying trend in housing speculation.

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Jan 20246 min read

Rent. Evictions. Public Housing. Race.

Rents stayed high to close out 2023. The latest numbers plus a deeper look at evictions in the region.

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Dec 20235 min read

Hampton Roads (Still) Has an Eviction Problem

The latest rental numbers alongside new eviction data for the region.

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Nov 20234 min read

Hampton Roads Rent Report — Thanksgiving Special

A shorter holiday edition. Regular reports resume in December.

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Oct 20235 min read

Rents Get Spooky. Is the Military to Blame?

Why do people blame the Basic Allowance for Housing? A look at the evidence.

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Sep 20236 min read

CityWork Turns 1 + Rent is On the Rise

One year in — and the question that started it all: who owns these apartments anyway?

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Aug 20236 min read

Hampton Roads Rent Report — July 2023

A deeper look at the impact of climate adaptation on rent in Norfolk.

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Jun 20236 min read

The Last Affordable Neighborhoods

Affordable one-bedrooms disappear as Newport News shows early signs of gentrification.

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May 20235 min read

Hampton Roads Rent Report — April 2023

As summer starts, rents are up — the average across all units hit $1,783, up from $1,770 in February.

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Mar 20235 min read

Hampton Roads Rent Report — February 2023

Spring is here — and with it, slightly lower rents.

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Feb 20235 min read

Rents, Seniors, Wages

Norfolk rent in four charts — the report that began CityWork's housing series.

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