As overall housing availability and affordability collapses at record rates in the United States, millions of renters face skyrocketing rents, unhealthy living situations, and the threat of eviction. A new report by CityHealth, an initiative of the de Beaumont Foundation and Kaiser Permanente, outlines three policy solutions that can help to increase affordable housing and improve health and racial equity: Affordable Housing Trusts, Healthy Rental Housing, and Legal Support for Renters.
Today, one in four renters, or 10.9 million people, spend more than 50% of their income on housing. More than 500,000 people experience homelessness on any given night. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, America has a shortage of nearly 7 million affordable homes — for every 100 families who need them most, only 37 affordable homes are available. Poor health outcomes associated with housing costs, quality, stability, and neighborhood context are much more likely to affect people of color as well as low income and vulnerable populations.
The modular, manufactured and offsite construction industries can make a huge difference in people’s lives but two things our industry has to do right now is encourage our government leaders to ease restrictions on both permitting and design and expand true financing for housing for the homeless, those living in poverty and affordable housing.
We are a huge and powerful part of the housing game and it’s time we began pushing our local, state and government agencies to work harder and faster to open the flood gates and let the offsite construction work toward helping solve this problem.
We are the ones on the white horses just waiting to rush in and save the day but if we don’t get organized and help push the solutions through all the agencies and code officials, affordable housing, as well as housing for the homeless and those living in poverty, will continue to be just out of reach.
CLICK HERE to read the entire “Addressing America’s Housing Crisis”
The report explores CityHealth’s three housing-related policy solutions that cities can adopt to increase safe, stable, and affordable housing to advance health and racial equity:
Affordable Housing Trusts are funds that are flexibly designed to address housing needs, including the development of affordable housing units, preservation and maintenance of existing housing stock, homeownership initiatives, and protections for renters facing eviction.
Healthy Rental Housing policies can help cities preserve and maintain existing housing through proactive inspections that enforce relevant health and safety laws. Renters, primarily those who are low-income, should have equal access to safe and healthy living conditions.
Legal Support for Renters policies can help cities grapple with the growing eviction crisis by providing a right to counsel, which is a proven intervention that can keep more tenants housed, decrease the use of homeless shelters, and help tenants who have to or want to move to do so in a way that preserves long-term housing stability.
The report also provides examples of cities across the country that have taken on the affordable housing crisis by implementing those policies.
Gary Fleisher is the Editor in Chief of Modular Home Source and Offsite Builder. Email at [email protected]
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