How To Affordable Housing

This can start to override the stigma often associated with low-income housing and even serving as a point of pride for those who live there” (Marin).

Every New Yorker has the right to a safe and affordable place to live in. New York’s shortage of affordable housing has reached a crisis point. Poor and elderly people throughout New York City are at a greater risk of homelessness and forced low-income residents do not have food or medical care to stay in their homes. A sinful structure of homelessness in New York City is New York’s shortage of affordable housing. Millions of New Yorkers are desperate to find affordable housing and tens of thousands are forced to live either in dirty shelters or on the streets. Recent data indicates that nearly 60,000 people, including more than 23,000 children, stay in the city’s main homeless shelter system (Guelpa). A small amount of poor renter households received a housing subsidy from the local government. Little assistance is being provided which means that most poor families and individuals that seek assistance

For the past fifty years the shift from meeting the housing needs of the poor through government projects-based housing to a more individual approach, has been slowly implemented. Housing vouchers now enable underprivileged populations to move from high-poverty, segregated neighborhoods to more un-segregated, low-poverty neighborhoods. Low-poverty neighborhoods have less crime, better opportunities for employment, and more diverse schooling options. Some housing advocates however, contend that housing assistance is unnecessary and is an income subsidy that should be combined with other social safety nets (Clark, W. 2008).

California’s housing situation is severe compared to the rest of the United States. California is included in the top three states with the most “housing cost burdened individuals” (Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, 2015). In a list of 20 cities where rents were highest compared to income, 10 of the 20 cities were in California with Los Angeles, CA topping the list (Dewan, 2014). Opponents might say that households in poverty could never afford housing due to their impoverished state but poverty measures of California show that the abnormally high cost of housing in California makes matters more severe and causes the amount of households that are severely cost afflicted to increase. Furthermore, when poverty measures take into account California’s uniquely expensive and insufficient housing supply, the results show that housing costs contribute significantly to poverty. For example, when housing costs were included in the California Poverty Measure as well as federal Supplemental Poverty Measure, the poverty rates rose substantially (Wimer, Mattingly, & Levin, 2013) (Short, 2015). And when high housing costs were artificially substituted with low housing costs, poverty rates significantly dropped (Bohn, Danielson, & Levin, 2013). And it’s not just the poor who are affected! Even those who are moderate income earners are becoming financially burdened by high housing costs. Those who are moderately well off compared to low income earners are financially burdened by rent costs in expensive cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles, CA (Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University,

It is often easy to castigate large cities or third world countries as failures in the field of affordable housing, yet the crisis, like an invisible cancer, manifests itself in many forms, plaguing both urban and suburban areas. Reformers have wrestled passionately with the issue for centuries, revealing the severity of the situation in an attempt for change, while politicians have only responded with band aid solutions. Unfortunately, the housing crisis easily fades from our memory, replaced by visions of homeless vets, or starving children. Metropolis magazine explains that “…though billions of dollars are spent each year on housing and development programs worldwide, ? At least 1 billion people

One of the simplest pieces of knowledge we acquire in elementary school (for future growth and development) are the three basic needs a living organism requires for living: food, water, and shelter. However, not everyone has access to all of these essentials. Homeless people are faced with awful conditions and suffer more due to poor weather conditions, diseases, and lack of safety. There hasn’t been much progress on this issue, and if this continues, the number of homeless people will only increase. In a few states the topic is being named as a “statewide emergency”, but unfortunately this problem is national. Instead of focusing on state programs, local programs and non-profit organizations to fix the housing issue, we must all contribute to ending this epidemic. The National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH) released an article stating, “In January 2015, 564,708 people were homeless on a given night in the United States” (Snapshot of Homelessness). We must develop a solution to end long term homelessness immediately. The best way of solving this issue is to provide stable long-term housing, which is a term used to describe the home’s environment and financial status.

One of the causes of homelessness in Baltimore City is lack of affordable housing, this includes subsidized housing from the state. Lack of affordable housing in Baltimore City is due to an increase luxury housing and Baltimore’s decrease desire for rental housing (Mayor’s Office of Human Services, 2013). Available housing is not proportional to the wages of people living in Baltimore City. Nearly half of renters in Baltimore spend 35% of their income or more on their rent. The waiting list for Baltimore City opened in 2014 and 74,000 households applied for 25,000 available slots for up to six years to own a voucher (“Homelessness in Baltimore,” 2017). For the extremely poor population there are only 42 available homes for over 100 people who identify with the population (Public Justice Center, 2015). Therefore, Baltimore needs to make affordable housing for their population or there should be an increase in jobs and wages. However, the private sector is not interested in developing houses for the low-income population because it is not profitable compared to selling a building to a company to make luxury housing (Richman, 2015).

Homelessness is one of the main problems plaguing the United States today, with low income earners at a higher risk of becoming homeless than previous years. There have been countless laws and ordinances put in place throughout the country in hopes of solving this growing problem but many of them have failed to address one of the main things causing this issue, economic inequality and the unequal distribution of wealth in the United States. Although there are many non-profit organizations working not only to get people off the streets, but to prevent them from becoming homeless in the first place, they are facing an uphill battle until the United States government addresses its country’s current unequal distribution of wealth. Throughout this essay I will be discussing the strategies multiple non-profit organizations, including the one I worked with last semester, are using in their battle to combat homelessness, the relationship between economic inequality and homelessness in the United States, and my experiences working with LifeMoves, formerly known as InnVision Shelter Network.

Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights asserts that housing is a fundamental component to a decent standard of living, yet few city governments--even in the most developed economies--have proven themselves capable of ensuring such a basic right to their constituents (United Nations, General Assembly). Ranked 49th among the 50 U.S. states for its number of housing units per capita, California has notoriously struggled with chronic shortages in its urban housing market. With 118,142 homeless people recorded in 2016, California holds almost 22% of the nation’s homeless population (Fact Sheet: Homelessness in California 1).

Underneath countless coffee shops and Whole Foods Markets lies a class struggle between the working class and the affluent new arrivals. In trying to restore low income neighborhoods to suit their middle class needs, gentrifiers end up causing more problems for the poor than they had to start with. For one, the arrival of wealthier residents grabs the attention of businesses, causing the area to grow economically. This economic growth, however, leads to a spike in rent costs and property tax. According to Mark Masson, 47.5% of the rental costs in Erie County are above the affordability threshold as of 2012, a drastic increase from 2000. Conversely, Buffalo has also experienced a rise of homeless and impoverished families. The increase in rent puts a large financial burden on working class families. Unable to pay the rent because of low wages, many working class families are forced to leave their neighborhoods in search of affordable housing. Unfortunately, the neighborhoods they end up moving to face the same problems as their former, pre-gentrified neighborhoods: crime, poverty, and

Demand for jobs decreases and the cost of housing in America continues to rise, making it hard for people to afford it. According to United States Home prices and Values, the median home value in the United States is $182,500 and the cost of housing has increases by 3.7% over the past year and predicts that the cost will increase by 2.4% within the next year. Clearly from this data, we can tell that people living below the poverty line are unable to afford the houses. Also, with their meager income, they have spent it on other things such as food, clothes, schools that are necessities for their survival other than housing. So many things to spend on with their income makes it impossible for them to make a decision and ended up abandoning their

For many individuals the difference between their current income and the cost of increasing housing in their neighborhood puts them at a risk, houses need to be affordable for people with even lower incomes before they consider being homeless. As stated in the Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders it has been said that, “ Homelessness is an acute version of residential instability, which can be compared or contrasted with definitions of poverty” (Homelessness). Homelessness and poverty have similar factors, difficult choices have to be made when individuals have a limited amount resources to provide for themselves and their families. The problem of insufficient incomes has been attributed to the growth of homelessness in the country. Those individuals that are employed are continually at risk of being homeless because by the time they pay their rent and utilities, there is not enough money to buy food or necessities. It is a disparaging thought that many homeless people are living on the streets due to them not receiving an equal opportunity to afford housing. It is equally discouraging when you have a job and still unable to sustain a valuable life, that will not lead you to being homeless. In a recent study, authors Doug Smith and Shelby Grad wrote that, “More than 2 million households in L.A. and Orange County have housing costs that exceed 30% of income, according to data from

The affordability problem is across all states and largely affects the working wage earners and below.(Housing Needs Assessment, 2015 booklet page 297) This is because throughout the nation there is a large differences between minimum wage, housing wage, and the affordable units available. As noted earlier in the essay, King County is experiencing a huge affordable housing Crisis. The 2015 Housing Needs Assessment indicated that there are only 28 affordable units for every 100 extremely cost burden families. Washington State is short in 166,058 affordable units, 2015. With Seattle economy and populations growing each year these affordable units are necessary to maintain the working class.

To clarify, the high rents and prices of products around the neighborhood prevent the low-income families to enhance their economy. For example, Knafo writes “Through rezoning, tax abatement for developer, and the privatization of public spaces, local governments and federal agencies often work to change low-income neighborhood at the encouragement of developers, they argue (Knafo 3).”/ “the ultimate hope of building support policies that protect low-income renters, particularly renters of color, from getting priced out of their communities (Knafo 6).” This illustrates that low-income people are being exclude from the developments for the reason that the excessive high prices and rent they need to pay. Although many people as Local governments and federal agencies might object that this developments are an advantages for the county economy, I maintain, this prejudiced the low-income families that cannot afford high rates in prices in their community. Therefore, I conclude that gentrification is a disruption of prosperity for the low-income

The lack of affordable housing in the United States is a problem that doesn 't receive nearly the attention that it necessitates. This absence of affordable housing became especially prevalent following World War II when suburbanization spread across the country like wildfire. Although the sheer number of homes increased, Jim Crow segregation influenced housing policy, meaning that white institutions prevented blacks from obtaining the mortgages needed to afford such homes. Therefore, rather than accept subprime loans, which often result in foreclosure, many black people have been pigeonholed into paying exorbitant rates for dilapidated rental properties located in inner-cities, thereby creating the affordable housing problem. Although the situation seems bleak, with careful planning and execution, we can solve the affordable housing problem. Specifically, my proposal involves the following two components: the government must first revise and draft three forms of legislation that create strict yet concise standards that landlords must follow, and then allocate federal funding to health and wellness programs within poor communities. By examining the contributing societal factors to the lack of affordable housing in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and then implementing the proposal mentioned above, one could potentially solve the affordable housing problem there and transpose the plan to other impoverished cities across the country.