According to Housing Instability Among Our Nation’s Veterans, 1.5 million veteran households suffered from severe housing cost burden in 2011, spending more than 50% of their income on housing. There were also significant disparities among veteran households, with veteran households headed by a racial minority, females, and those with a disability more likely to be cost burdened than their counterparts. NLIHC’s report provides a deeper understanding of the housing needs of veterans by examining several characteristics, including household income, race/ethnicity, family type, service-related disabilities, and period of military service. Data used for the analysis was drawn from 2011 Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) population and housing files of the American Community Survey. The report finds that veterans with low incomes suffer from the shortage of affordable, decent housing just as low income non-veterans do. If the nation is to prevent homelessness among our veterans, the federal government must make a much greater investment in permanent, affordable housing. Funding the National Housing Trust Fund is the best solution to both ending and preventing veteran homelessness.
Special thanks to the Home Depot Foundation for providing support for this research.
Althea Arnold, MPP, Research Analyst Megan Bolton, MPP, Research Director Sheila Crowley, Ph.D., MSW, President
November 2013 National Low Income Housing Coalition
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