Affordable Housing Lacking in Every State

Eric Pianin shares news of a new report [pdf] by the Urban Institute, which "found that the affordable housing crisis has hit virtually every county in the country, from upscale urban areas like San Francisco and New York to small towns and rural areas."

Additional findings of the "The Housing Affordability Gap for Extremely Low-Income Renters in 2014" include:

• "Nationwide, only 21 inexpensive and livable housing units are available for every 100 extremely low-income renter households…"
• "The shortage of adequate, affordable and available units for the poor is worst in large, urban areas and counties, although no section of the country has an adequate supply. There are only 42 available and adequate units per 100 extremely low-income households in metropolitan counties, compared with 69 available and adequate units per 100 in rural counties."

The report's findings are presented against the backdrop of the Trump Administration's desired cuts to federal housing assistance programs. Although proposed cuts to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) didn't make it into the federal spending bill approved recently by Congress, ideas to cut Section 8 housing vouchers and public housing subsidies, Community Development Block Grants, and other forms of housing and rental assistance for the poor, elderly, and disabled are still out there, and could be considered in the next federal budget process.

The report also makes the case the already horrible affordable housing situation in the country would be a lot, lot worse without the support of those programs.