Official State of Rhode Island website

State of Rhode Island Executive Office of Housing

Housing Forward

Welcome to Housing Forward!

Housing Forward is a new, free, and optional resource for Rhode Islanders who help shape housing in their communities—municipal leaders, planners, elected officials, developers, housing organizations, property owners, advocates, and residents.

Housing Forward includes:

  • A housing workbook with eight sections intended to be a practical guide to key concepts and ideas. — Coming Soon
  • Housing 101 videos that provide a foundation in housing fundamentals, legal and regulatory framework, how local housing decisions are made, and strategies for understanding and responding to the unique housing needs of each community. — Coming Soon
  • Case studies that provide real-world examples, with video and written stories from communities and housing leaders. — Written Coming Soon
  • Myth-busting fact sheets to debunk common housing myths. — Coming Soon 
  • Roundtable discussions to give participants an opportunity to discuss topics, ask questions, share challenges, and explore issues that arose throughout the training series in a collaborative, peer-learning environment. — Dates & Locations TBA
  • Live training webinars that will offer participants an opportunity to explore key housing topics in greater depth tailored to different types of communities. See the calendar of webinar dates and times, discover which community type is most relevant to you, and register today by clicking here.  

The Executive Office of Housing invites you to watch the introductory video below and explore Housing Forward to strengthen your understanding of housing and build local capacity for the housing your community, and Rhode Island as a whole, needs.

Housing Forward exists to help communities understand their housing needs, bring clarity to the laws that govern local planning and land use, and identify housing strategies that fit their places and how to implement them. The program covers needs assessment, fair housing, the role of local government, land use tools, funding and financing, other municipal tools such as housing trusts and redevelopment, and building public support. Case studies show projects built in Rhode Island communities. 

The program was developed by Weston & Sampson with HousingWorks RI and Grow Smart Rhode Island, on behalf of the Executive Office of Housing.