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

Multifamily Groups Press for Shutdown Solution

January 22, 2019                           By: Gail Kalinoski

NMHC, the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities and other organizations lobby for an end to the crisis, citing the impact on areas like rental assistance programs and affordable housing projects.

With the partial federal shutdown now in its 32nd day and Democrats and Republicans in Washington, D.C. seemingly far apart on a deal to end it soon, multifamily industry experts—along with representatives of affordable housing non-profits and commercial real estate groups—are calling on Congress and President Donald Trump to find a solution.

Sunia Zaterman

In addition to lobbying, many multifamily owners and property managers are announcing deferred rent plans for furloughed federal workers.

“This shutdown is having a very real impact on multifamily residents, communities and companies across the country. As the shutdown continues into its second month, the resulting challenges and unfortunate circumstances will only grow,” Cindy Chetti, senior vice president of government affairs at the National Multifamily Housing Council, told MHN.

On Friday last week, the NMHC was among hundreds of business groups that signed a letter from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce addressed to the president and members of Congress urging them to “to immediately take steps to restore the full operation of the federal government.” The groups—which include the National Apartment Association, National Retail Federation, American Bankers Association and CCIM Institute—stated that the shutdown “is causing significant and in some cases lasting damage to families, businesses and the economy as a whole.”.................Read More

The Government Shutdown Could Decimate America's Subsidized Housing Programs

January 22, 2019                 By: Sophie Kasakove

The contracts of over 1,000 Section 8 units have already expired, putting in jeopardy the housing of tens of thousands of people enrolled in the subsidy program. Should the shutdown continue, things could get much, much worse.

The government shutdown has hit the one-month mark, and subsidized housing programs are reeling.

Between December and January, the contracts of 1,150 Section 8 units expired, putting in jeopardy the housing of tens of thousands of people enrolled in the project-based rental assistance subsidy program (over half of whom are elderly or disabled). Another 500 contracts are set to expire if the shutdown continues into February.

Section 8 housing in the South Bronx. The shutdown may force landlords to put necessary home repairs on hold.     (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

As administered through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the project-based rental assistance program allows for HUD to "directly contract with private landlords to provide affordable homes to low-income tenants at certain properties," according to the National Housing Law Project, an advocacy group. More specifically, the program allows landlords to charge market rates, with tenants paying 30 percent of their income and HUD picking up the rest.

So far, it seems that many property owners have been able to make do by dipping into reserve funds, but within a few weeks these savings may start to dry up. This could force landlords to put necessary repairs on hold. Or, in the case of the not insignificant minority of units owned by non-profit developers—that is, community development corporations and housing organizations that aim to provide for those who are unable to obtain housing through the private market—it could mean cutting off additional services like afterschool and workforce programs. At worst, the funding cuts could lead landlords to demand that tenants pay the full rent themselves, or else face eviction....................Read More

Housing Leaders Warn of Shutdown's Impact on Affordable Housing & Communities During National Call

January 16, 2019                                By: NLIHC

Washington, DC – Members of the Campaign for Housing and Community Development Funding(CHCDF) hosted a national call with over 2,200 registrants yesterday, January 15, about the effects of the partial government shutdown on low-income people and communities and the affordable housing programs that serve them.

Experts from multiple affordable housing organizations shared information on the shutdown’s impact on federal affordable housing and community development programs and emphasized that the longer the shutdown continues, the more negatively it will impact people with the lowest incomes – seniors, people with disabilities, and families with children. Panelists spoke about the shutdown’s effects on public housing, project-based rental assistance, housing vouchers, rural housing, and housing and services for seniors, people with disabilities, the homeless, and those at risk of homelessness.

The panel encouraged listeners to contact their members of Congress and tell them to vote now—before residents in federally assisted housing experience rent hikes and evictions—to reopen the federal government and pass clean fiscal year 2019 spending bills. Listeners were also urged to encourage their members of Congress to sign onto a “dear colleague” letter led by Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) and Representative Marc Veasey (D-TX) to be sent to President Trump on the shutdown’s severe consequences for affordable housing.....................Read More

'There's no money': Shutdown freezes HUD funds for low-income senior citizens

January 11, 2018                               By: Suzy Khimm and Laura Strickler

"If something major broke, I wouldn't have the funds to replace it," said a manager of an affordable housing building for seniors in Florida.

The government shutdown means that the long-leaking roof of San Jose Manor II Apartments won’t be replaced anytime soon, says Alma Ballard, who oversees the building for low-income senior citizens in Jacksonville, Florida.

Shirley Henderson, 69, is worried about the impact of the shutdown on the federally subsidized building where she lives in Jacksonville, Florida.

“That’s definitely not going to happen,” said Ballard, executive director of the nonprofit Family Housing Management, who said that water has at times dripped into some residents’ rooms.

Ballard said Family Housing Management had been saving up for a new roof for the 50-unit government-subsidized property, but had to put the plans on hold because its contract with the Department of Housing and Urban Development was still in the process of being renewed when the shutdown began. The company never received its December and January payments from HUD, totaling about $40,000, immediately putting the property under financial strain.

The few federal employees left at HUD have been scouring the books, looking for a last-minute solution to fund hundreds of affordable housing contracts that have expired under the shutdown.................Read More