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HUD recently published in the Federal Register its list of 2017 Difficult Development Areas (DDAs) and Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs), which are used in the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program. HUD designates DDAs and QCTs each year. DDAs are areas with high development costs relative to incomes. QCTs are census tracts with a poverty rate of at least 25 percent or in which 50 percent of the households have incomes below 60 percent of area median income.

According to a recent blog post by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), the gap between rents and renter incomes grew in 2015, despite a rise in median household income and decline in poverty that year.

Rep. Charles Boustany, a Republican who is also the House Ways and Means Tax Policy Subcommittee Chairman, recently introduced a bill that would provide tax relief for victims of devastating storms and flooding that occurred in Louisiana this past August.

A number of national organizations are opposing or expressing concerns about the “Middle Income Housing Tax Credit Act of 2016” (S.3384), introduced by Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) in September. S.3384 would create a new federal tax credit to incentivize developers to build and preserve housing affordable to families earning 100 percent of the area median income (AMI) or below. It’s estimated the bill would cost $4.5 billion annually.

During a recent hearing, the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit considered legislative proposals to help consumers, particularly those with low incomes, gain more access to mainstream banking and credit services. One of the proposals discussed was the “Credit Access and Inclusion Act of 2015” (H.R. 4172) that would allow owners, including public housing authorities (PHAs), and utility and telecom companies to ...

HUD recently published a final rule that formally recognizes harassment in fair housing law. The rule sets forth standards for evaluating claims of quid pro quo (“this for that”) harassment as well as hostile environment harassment in the context of housing.

In a recent op-ed published by the New York Times, presidential candidate Hillary Clinton discussed her plans for combatting family poverty. With 11.4 million households spending more than half their monthly income on rent, Clinton plans to expand the Low Income Housing Tax Credit to increase the supply of affordable housing and fuel broader community development.

The U.S. Census Bureau recently released data from the 2015 American Community Survey (ACS). The ACS collects U.S. demographic, housing, economic, and commuting data on an annual basis. Approximately 3.5 million households are selected annually from every county in the nation to complete the survey. Annual survey results are available at the state, county, and local levels for jurisdictions with at least 65,000 residents.

Urban Institute and National Housing Conference have created an interactive webpage that illustrates the need for subsidy when charging affordable rents to low-income families. The site introduces readers to a...

Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR) recently announced plans to introduce a tax credit in September for the development of workforce housing. According to Wyden, the tax credit will be modeled after the LIHTC, “the Federal Government’s highlight successful program that encourages the development and rehabilitation of affordable rental housing for low-income families.”