Report: LGBTQI+ Households and HUD-Assisted Housing

HUD’s Office of Policy Development & Research recently posted new research from data gathered on the housing experiences of the LGBTQI+ community. This community is defined by HUD researchers as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and individuals whose orientations differ from those who identify as heterosexual and cisgender.

The research paper, Examining Housing Experiences by Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, is made possible by the recent inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) questions in the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey. The Household Pulse Survey was initiated during COVID-19 to gather pandemic-era data on U.S. households. Because the Household Pulse Survey had already included data on race, ethnicity, and housing status, the new inclusion of SOGI data allowed HUD to examine the intersection of these four characteristics.

For the first time, HUD researchers were able to link Household Pulse Survey SOGI data with HUD’s public housing, vouchers, and project-based multifamily housing programs. “[T]his analysis provides the Department’s first estimate of LGBTQI+ households receiving HUD assistance,” the PD&R researchers say.

Findings

According to the survey data, approximately 15.4 percent of all U.S. renter households, or 6.9 million households, are LGBTQI+. The research shows that renter households and HUD-assisted households demonstrate a similar prevalence of LGBTQI+ households. LGBTQI+ households make up approximately 12 percent of HUD-assisted renter households. This may indicate that HUD’s housing programs may not pose a significant barrier to entry for LGBTQI+ households.

However, more research is needed to determine whether this rate is consistent across different regions for LGBTQI+ households and "whether LGBTQI+ households who do receive assistance experience outcomes similar to those of non-LGBTQI+ households receiving assistance, such as in the length of assistance and the ability to access high-quality neighborhoods with HUD assistance,” the new research says.

The research also found that LGBTQI+ and non-LGBTQI+ households experienced similar rates of housing insecurity. Housing insecurity rates for these two populations were approximately the same as those in the general U.S. renter population. However, housing insecurity metrics were higher for LGBTQI+ Black and Hispanic renter households than for their non-LGBTQI+ Black and Hispanic counterparts.

The researchers note the need for more research due to certain limitations such as sample size and response rates. “We hope that future research into the housing experiences of the LGBTQI+ community will help advance the cause of LBGTQI+ equality, mitigate the effects of generations of discrimination, and improve the lives of America’s sexual and gender minorities population,” the research concludes.