Pennsylvania Short Over 100,000 Housing Units

Pennsylvania’s housing shortage is forcing more of the state’s residents into becoming renters, a segment that has grown by almost 200,000 households in the last 15 years. Meanwhile, the state faces a shortage of roughly 100,000 units, according to the governor’s office, reports John Finnerty in the Altoona Mirror.

To address the crisis, the state legislature included $85 million for the Pennsylvania Housing Affordability and Rehabilitation and Enhancement fund in the 2024-20245 budget. “Since Gov. Josh Shapiro took office, PHARE-funded housing projects have increased by 55 percent and over 1,000 projects have been funded to build or repair more than 8,200 housing units.”

One strategy used by the Allegheny County Housing Authority is to use federal housing assistance vouchers to help people pay mortgages rather than just rent. According to Rich Stephenson, director of the ACHA, “What do we do? Oh, we go buy another house in that community for the next person who’s ready. Now that house is back on the real estate tax rolls, paying taxes to the distressed community, which is what they desperately need.”