NLIHC will hold a webinar on the 2017 edition of its report The GAP: A Shortage of Affordable Homes on March 2. The report measures the availability of rental housing affordable to extremely low income (ELI) households and other income groups nationwide. It shows that the U.S. has a shortage of 7.4 million affordable rental homes available to the nation’s 11.4 million ELI renter households, or just 35 affordable and available units for every 100 ELI renter households. Seventy-one percent of ELI renter households are severely cost-burdened, spending more than half of their income on rent and utilities. The GAP report also indicates that the shortage disappears for households higher up the income ladder.
This year’s analysis is slightly different from previous years in that NLIHC adopted the federal government’s new statutory definition for ELI households, which are those whose income is less than 30% of their area median income or the poverty guideline, whichever is higher. The report shows that ELI renter households face a shortage of affordable and available rental homes in every state. The shortage ranges from 15 affordable and available homes for every 100 ELI renter households in Nevada to 61 in Alabama. ELI renter households also face a shortage of affordable and available rental homes in every major metropolitan area. Among the 50 largest metropolitan areas, the shortage ranges from 12 affordable and available homes for every 100 ELI renter households in Las Vegas, NV to 46 in Boston, MA.
The report demonstrates why federal housing expenditures must be better targeted to serve households with the greatest needs. It calls for adoption of the NLIHC-led United for Homes (UFH) campaign proposals to rebalance federal housing policy by making modest reforms to the mortgage interest deduction (MID) and investing the savings into affordable housing programs for the lowest income households.
NLIHC invites all affordable housing advocates to join a webinar on March 2 at 2 pm ET to learn about NLIHC’s 2017 edition of The GAP and about the UFH campaign. The webinar will review critical findings from The GAP report, share key information and resources from the newly designed UFH website, and provide legislative updates related to affordable housing, comprehensive tax reform, and the MID.
Register for the webinar today at: http://bit.ly/2kr9AiH