Affordable Housing: 11 Ways The Real Estate Industry Can Help

February 21, 2019                     By: Forbes Real Estate Council

A lack of affordable housing remains a serious issue. Many Americans are being priced out of the cities they work in, and families are struggling to provide shelter for their children.

This is not just a personal issue: It’s a social one — and one with long-term impact. To find out some steps that can be taken to tackle the problem, we asked the experts of Forbes RealEstate Council how people in the real estate industry can make a positive impact on the housing market in order to help address the issue of housing affordability. Here's what they had to say.

Members discuss making a positive impact.  PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS.

1. Partner With Other Affordable Housing Stakeholders

Local officials are looking for ways to maintain and preserve affordable housing. You may be able to take advantage of subsidies to help underwrite your efforts. You could also meet with a local affordable housing developer or active not-for-profit organization to learn and discuss partnerships. Also, consider partnering with large institutions in your area, such as universities and hospitals. - Deborah Rabbino Bhatt, Vesta New York................Read More

What the federal budget deal means for affordable housing

February 15, 2019                          By: Jeff Andrews

Rental-assistance programs and public housing see increased funding

Months of political gamesmanship over the federal government’s budget came to an end Friday when President Trump signed a bipartisan compromise that will keep the government open through the rest of the year.

The issue at the core of the impasse—a barrier wall along the southern border—has yet to be resolved as Trump declares a national emergency to obtain funds for it. But the budget deal ends a period of alarm and uncertainty for people who rely on federal assistance to pay for housing, and in fact gives the programs that provide that assistance a funding boost.

Corbis iva Getty Imgaes

For 2019, tenant-based rental assistance, including Section 8 rental vouchers, got a 2.65 percent increase in funding to $22.5 billion. Project-based rental assistance got a 1 percent increase to $11.7 billion.

The public housing capital fund—which is used to make repairs and improvements on public housing units—saw a modest increase of $25 million in funding to $2.7 billion. Likewise, the public housing operating fund got a 2.26 percent increase in funding to $4.6 billion. Given that the funding increases are modest, it’s unlikely they will go toward any new initiatives.........Read More

Trust in Public Housing at Stake Over Looming Government Shutdown

February 12, 2019                         By: Amanda Abrams

As the previous shutdown lingered, officials worried what running out of money could mean for 1.1 million low-income households.

The 35-day government shutdown wreaked havoc on millions of Americans lives and livelihoods as fewer food inspections took place, parks went uncleaned, museums shut their doors, airport lines grew longer, and whole agencies ground to a halt. The experience was especially distressing for those who depend on the federal government for their basic needs, including food and shelter.

The Farragut Houses, a public housing project in Brooklyn, New York. The 35-day government shutdown was especially distressing for those who depend on the federal government for their basic needs, including food and shelter. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Thousands of furloughed employees—many living paycheck to paycheck—found themselves in line for free meals at pop-up kitchens and food pantries.

Recipients of SNAP assistance worried whether their monthly benefits would end.

And contractors with the Department of Housing and Urban Development and their tenants agonized over what a shutdown meant for them.

“We work really, really hard to have good relationships with local landlords. And if there’s the slightest hint that they won’t get their subsidy payments as promised, it erodes trust,” said Kurt Wiest, executive director of the Bremerton Housing Authority in Washington state. “And this program operates on trust.”............Read More

How Affordable Housing Can Improve the American Economy

February 5, 2019                                  By: Richard Florida

Building more affordable housing units in the metros that are centers of innovation will increase demand for the wares that fill houses, and increase productivity.

Housing is a big part of America’s story of innovation, productivity, and economic growth. For much of the industrial 20th century, housing helped to drive the economy by stimulating demand. Building more housing—especially in the suburbs—stoked the demand for more cars, washing machines, and other durable goods from America’s factories, creating good jobs for American workers and setting in motion a virtuous circle of economic growth.

In Miami, around 45 percent of households are cost-burdened, meaning residents spend more than 30 percent of their income on rent. //Carlos Barria/Reuters

But housing plays a very different role in today’s knowledge economy, where innovation and growth stimulate the clustering of knowledge, talent, and ideas. As a growing chorus of economists point out, the problem today is that we do not have enough housing—especially affordable housing—in the expensive and productive locations that drive the economy. The economic consequences often mean unskilled workers are unable to access good jobs in these cities, which costs the economy a huge amount in lost productivity...........................Read More

Zoning Reform Alone Won't Make Housing Affordable: Noah Smith

February 4, 2019                   By: Bloomberg

A new paper finds that zoning reform in big cities makes land more expensive without necessarily creating more housing units.

(Bloomberg Opinion)—During the past few years, it has become clear that housing affordability is a major challenge facing the U.S. Rent is consuming an increasing percentage of consumers’ paychecks:

The problem has become especially acute in big cities and technology hubs like San Francisco:

One of the most popular solutions being proposed is zoning reform. Rules that limit density — especially single-family zoning — restrict the amount of housing available near a city center, and make it difficult for people of modest means to live near transportation hubs and employers. When Minneapolis recently voted to end single-family zoning, it was hailed as a victory for racial and economic justice. Meanwhile, presidential candidate, Senator Elizabeth Warren, has made zoning reform a centerpiece of her housing affordability bill. Even Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson has vowed to attack restrictive zoning...........................Read More