San Francisco, one of the most expensive housing markets in the country, was more than double the California median price in the first quarter and more than 350 percent above the national average.

In the face of spiking foreclosure rates, plummeting home values and slow sales, what will draw investors back to the housing market? How will the risk in the housing market be re-priced to attract new capital?

San Francisco's need for housing for the homeless, rental housing and affordable housing for purchase far outstrips the available supply. Toronto shares many of the same problems.

Affordable "by design" units cost less to produce because they are small, efficiently designed and do not come with a parking space. Could this be a new way to produce middle-income housing without using public subsidy?

San Francisco is one of the world's great cities, not just because of its beauty but because of its culture. That culture is threatened directly by the high cost of housing. Unless we do something, we will lose our artists, our progressive politics, our immigrants and our young people. This second edition of our housing strategy updates the policy reports that define SPUR's housing agenda.