
WorkForce Housing Development with Nela Bayouth feat. Erik Leschuk
Workforce housing—often called the "missing middle"—is a growing challenge in cities across the United States. Plenty of people need a solid place to live without settling for aging, poorly maintained apartment complexes, yet most new construction is built for those who can pay higher rents. So what do we do about housing for the missing middle? That's the affordable housing discussion. Entrepreneurs solve problems for profit. When they take on workforce housing, they almost always have to partner with local governments. Those governments can help seed value—through land, incentives, or simpler processes—so developers can build units that actually fit a workable monthly rent. Entrepreneurs and real estate investors Nela Bayouth and Erik Leschuk decided to collaborate on exactly that challenge. Most communities keep sprawling outward. Nela and Erik are focused on the opposite: infill development—creating housing supply on small parcels in denser, already-developed parts of the city. These are often underused or blighted lots, frequently owned by the municipality, with little productive value and little tax revenue today. In Wichita, Kansas, they have several projects that make use of a practical building approach on parcels of less than one acre. When these brand-new apartment developments fill up, they deliver housing that fits the budgets of workforce residents—without forcing them to settle for lesser quality or no amenities at all. These projects are catching the attention of developers and municipalities around the country. This is our discussion with Nela and Erik about solving the workforce housing problem.















