Episodes

  • Policy that helps us evolve: Conversation with Natali Fani-Gonzalez

    Policy that helps us evolve: Conversation with Natali Fani-Gonzalez
    Jun 6 2025
    I continued speaking with inspiring and brilliant millennials in this week’s episode. Natali Fani-Gonzalez is a first-term council member in Montgomery County, Maryland. With her love of numbers and community-centered leadership, she has already passed a well-balanced (yet controversial) rent control bill and an office-to-residential conversion law. She’s faced plenty of setbacks along the way, but that has not stopped her: a missing middle housing bill is next in the works. We would like to hear what you think about this conversation or if you have any ideas for how to bring the starter homes back from the brink of extinction, send us a note at starterhomepodcast@gmail.com
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    41 mins
  • Land Value Tax - Conversation with Daryl Fairweather

    Land Value Tax - Conversation with Daryl Fairweather
    May 30 2025

    In this episode, I spoke with Daryl Fairweather. Dr. Fairweather is the chief economist at Redfin as well as a member of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Academic Advisory Council. She explained the idea of Land Value Tax and how taxing land differently can help us incentivize denser and more sustainable development.

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    26 mins
  • What is your American Dream? Conversation with Christian Calderon

    What is your American Dream? Conversation with Christian Calderon
    May 16 2025

    In this episode, I spoke with Christian Calderon. Unlike our other guests, he isn’t working to build starter homes—he’s trying to buy one. Christian shares a powerful immigrant story and an unwavering belief in the American Dream. We were also joined by Chris Costa from Stevens & Lee, who helped shed light on the technical challenges Christian faced in the process of purchasing his home.
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    42 mins
  • Is Sustainable Affordable? Conversation with Matt Kaplan

    Is Sustainable Affordable? Conversation with Matt Kaplan
    May 9 2025
    In this episode, I spoke with Matthew Kaplan, Cofounder and CEO of ReVireo, an energy efficiency and green building services company based in New Jersey. Matt and his team live and breathe sustainability as it relates to buildings. As a leader in the field, he shed light on how sustainable projects are approved and delivered—what’s not working, and what could be improved. We would like to hear what you think about this conversation or if you have any ideas for how to bring the starter homes back from the brink of extinction, send us a note at starterhomepodcast@gmail.com
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    45 mins
  • Legalizing Cities: Conversation with Burhan Azeem

    Legalizing Cities: Conversation with Burhan Azeem
    May 2 2025
    This is one of the most inspiring conversations I have had. In this episode, I spoke with Burhan Azeem. He is the youngest city councilor in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Burhan worked tirelessly to remove costly parking minimums and expand zoning for 100% affordable housing projects. He is laser focused on legalizing multifamily housing up to six stories throughout the city, ensuring that Cambridge remains an affordable and accessible place to live for all its residents. For those who are familiar with the work or Abundant Housing Massachusents or Ezra Klein's and Derek Thompson book, Abundance, Burhan's work is the real life implementation. We would like to hear what you think about this conversation or if you have any ideas for how to bring the starter homes back from the brink of extinction, send us a note at starterhomepodcast@gmail.com
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    1 hr and 25 mins
  • Gentrification: Hopeful and Practical Solutions

    Gentrification: Hopeful and Practical Solutions
    Apr 25 2025
    I’m thrilled to continue the conversations with brilliant millennials about housing and homeownership. In this episode, I spoke with Iziah Thompson, a Senior Policy Analyst at the Community Service Society of New York, where he researches and advocates for housing policies aimed at improving the lives of low-income New Yorkers and strengthening urban communities. We discussed Community Land Trusts, and I learned about Land Acquisition Revolving Funds. We also didn’t shy away from addressing the uncomfortable topic of gentrification. We would like to hear what you think about this conversation or if you have any ideas for how to bring the starter homes back from the brink of extinction, send us a note at starterhomepodcast@gmail.com
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    34 mins
  • Theory and Practice of Changing People's Minds, conversation with Matt Mleczko

    Theory and Practice of Changing People's Minds, conversation with Matt Mleczko
    Apr 18 2025

    As we continue in our series of conversations with brilliant Millennials, I spoke with Matt Mleczko. Dr. Mleczko received his Ph.D. in Population Studies and Social Policy from Princeton University where he conducted research as part of the The Eviction Lab. Matt also practices what he preaches - he can be found educating people about housing policy, attending public hearings supporting local projects and helping build coalitions. Check out his organization PrincetonGrows.com

    Do let us know what you think about this conversation, what other topics you would like to hear or if you have any ideas for how to bring the starter homes back from the brink of extinction, send us a note at starterhomepodcast@gmail.com
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    55 mins
  • Caught between Institutional Investors and NIMBYs, conversation with Katie Brennan

    Caught between Institutional Investors and NIMBYs, conversation with Katie Brennan
    Apr 11 2025
    This episode kicks off a series of conversations with millennials about housing and homeownership. I spoke with Katie Brennan, a graduate of Rutgers University’s Master of Urban Planning program. She has worked for both nonprofit and governmental organizations—for example, she served as the Chief of Staff at the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency. She is also running for public office. I was interested in hearing both the personal stories and professional perspectives of these talented and dedicated young people. We would like to hear what you think about this conversation or if you have any ideas for how to bring the starter homes back from the brink of extinction, send us a note at starterhomepodcast@gmail.com
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    51 mins