We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy.
HUD recently published a notice designating the 2018 Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs) and Difficult Development Areas (DDAs) for the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program. Qualified Census Tracts are those areas where either: (1) 50 percent or more of the households have incomes below 60 percent of the area median gross income; or (2) the poverty rate is at least 25 percent. Difficult Development Areas are those areas with high construction, land, and utility cost...
The U.S. Census Bureau recently released two annual reports on income and poverty. The first report, entitled “Income and Poverty in the United States: 2016,” presents data on income, earnings, income inequality, and poverty in the United States based on information collected in the 2017 and earlier Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplements (CPS ASEC) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) recently introduced the Smoke Free Affordable Housing Act (HR3322) to encourage subsidized housing developers to maintain a healthy environment for residents while protecting the subsidized property from expensive smoking-related remediation costs. According to her press release, the Smoke Free Affordable Housing Act would incentivize subsidized housing developers to establish and maintain smoke-free policies to create a healthy envir...
On Aug. 1, 2017, the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing on “America’s Affordable Housing Crisis: Challenges and Solutions.” Committee members from both sides of the aisle acknowledged the need for more affordable housing and the role of LIHTCs as our nation’s primary tool for increasing the supply of affordable rental housing.
Testifying before the Senate Finance Committee, Daniel Garcia-Diaz, a director of financial markets and community investment with the Government Accountability Office (GAO), referring to the LIHTC program, said, "IRS and no one else in the federal government really has an idea of what's going on. These are basic accountability requirements we would expect of any program, especially one as important as this one."
Two Stanford economists recently conducted a study that looks into the ramifications of a bill Congress is preparing concerning affordable housing. The bill would no longer require state agencies to notify local officials when siting a proposed housing development, leaving the officials with no liberty to choose who they live with in terms of financial status.
The U.S Conference of Mayors (USCM) is making affordable housing and community development key priorities in its policy agenda. The USCM is the official non-partisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more, with each city represented by its mayor. At the organization’s 85th Annual Meeting, incoming USCM President Mayor Mitch Landrieu of New Orleans joined his colleagues in unveiling their bipartisan proposal, Leadership for America: Mayors’...
A recent report by the Urban Institute, titled A Paired-Testing Pilot Study of Housing Discrimination against Same-Sex Couples and Transgender Individuals, finds that transgender individuals and male homosexual couples face discrimination from housing providers. The report is the first systematic, in-person study of housing discrimination based on sexual orientation and transgender status.
A recent report issued by the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) says there is no state in the nation where a minimum-wage worker can afford a modest two-bedroom apartment. The annual report, titled “Out of Reach: The High Cost of Housing,” found that in order to afford a modest two-bedroom unit in the U.S., renters need to earn a wage of $21.21 per hour, or more than 2.9 times higher than the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.
A new analysis of the LIHTC program by CBRE Affordable Housing Research Services shows that the program is benefiting those most in need of affordable housing, namely largely families with children and seniors with extremely low incomes. The data was the result of the 2008 Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA), which required that each state housing finance agency (HFA) administering the LIHTC program provide HUD with annual demographic and economic information on te...