Smart Codes in Your Community: A Guide to Building Rehabilitation Codes

America's stock of existing buildings—both residential and nonresidential—continues to age. This stock represents a vital national asset that can be used to meet the demand for housing and commercial development, consistent with state and local efforts to wisely manage continued growth. In many cases, the demand for repairs, renovation and rehabilitation of existing buildings has outpaced the ability of state and local planners to develop effective building and maintenance codes that govern these activities.

This report, Smart Codes in Your Community: A Guide to Building Rehabilitation Codes, provides a broad overview of the general regulatory environment governing the use and reuse of existing buildings. It also provides examples of state and local efforts to reduce regulatory complexity and suggests possible strategies to help spur reinvestment in the existing building infrastructure.