Affordable Housing Crisis in 2022

What is the Affordable Housing Crisis?

Imagine walking into a bank hoping to set up an account to start your new job. You have been unhoused for about 6 months and therefore unable to provide the bank with an address. With no address, there is no bank account. The possibility of finding a job without an address or bank account is virtually non-existent. Now you cannot set up a bank account and you cannot find a job that will hire you without one. What many consider a typical and easy process has now inhibited you from not only a bank account but a way to make a living. It is common to hear things such as "why not just get a job, there's plenty of them?" until we consider what steps are involved in making that happen.  

Affordable housing is a place to live where someone can pay rent while also having money for other necessary things like food and transportation (Local Housing Solutions, 2022). Affordable housing is not just four walls and a roof; it is knowing you have a place to go to at the end of every day, knowing you have protection from the snow in January or the heat in August, having a space for your belongings instead of carrying them all on your back. Currently, only one in four low-income families receives the assistance they need to survive- including housing. On any given night there are at least 580,000 people who do not have shelter. The three basic tenets of being able to survive are food, water, and shelter. It is unrealistic to expect people to provide for themselves if shelter costs over 50% of someone’s income every month (NLIHC, 2022). 

The housing crisis impacts those who are of a lower socioeconomic status. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition (2022), at least 6.8 million affordable housing units are needed to help low-income families. The Coalition also points out that there is not a single state in the United States in which working full-time at minimum wage will get you a two-bedroom apartment. Not only is there a lack of affordable housing, but there is also a lack of a livable wage.  

What is the U.S. doing?

The US has made considerable progress in implementing the Biden-Harris Administration’s Housing Supply Action Plan. This 5-year plan is aimed at creating more housing and eventually eliminating the housing shortfall. Namely, “improving Federal Financing for Affordable Housing Production and Preservation” through “finalizing the Lower Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) averaging rule (WH.GOV, 2022).” The plan outlines boosting the supply of quality, affordable rental units, and manufactured housing. It also emphasizes making single-family homes more accessible and working with local governments to increase the housing supply.  

The averaging of the Lower Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) would help those looking for affordable housing by expanding the LIHTC average. In doing this, the hope is that there will be more financially stable LIHTC projects and that LIHTC will be more accessible in low-populated areas. Finalizing the LIHTC averaging rule will especially help those considered extremely low-income because projects can now cross-subsidize, which provides the opportunity to produce affordable housing.  

What is Colorado doing?

HB22-1378 (The Denver-metro Regional Navigation Campus Grant) will help individuals who are unhoused by providing opportunities to obtain long-term housing stability (Colorado General Assembly, 2022). The bill indicates that this grant will fund things like behavioral health services and job training. In doing this, Denver is hoping to prevent houselessness.  

SB22-211 (Repurpose the Ridge View Campus) is focused on repurposing the old Ridge View campus into a community for those who do not have a house (Colorado General Assembly, 2022). This will focus on building out the community to have a transitional housing program, behavioral health services, and a qualified health center or other primary care clinics to which those who live in this community will have access.  

These bills will allow individuals a permanent address to provide to their employer and bank, which is key to being able to find a job. They also require that individuals have access to both mental and physical care if needed. What these bills do not mention are transportation or food insecurity, both of which are things those who are unhoused struggle with. That said, there are multiple food banks and other opportunities around the city for individuals to get food like the Food Bank of the Rockies and the Hope Starts Here Food Bank. Various modes of transportation are important for individuals to get to and from work, groceries, and to get children to school. As previously mentioned, the three main components to be able to live are food, water, and shelter. Transportation and the ability to get food are inextricably linked to affordable housing.  

The Housing Supply Action Plan does mention transportation as a part of the 5-year plan. Some grants will be provided to different cities/municipalities that are making investments in density increment and housing availability. The cities/municipalities will then use this money to continue to build affordable housing. This is something being done in both New York and Colorado. In Colorado specifically, the Department of Transportation has granted over twenty-four million dollars to a project that will build three new transit sites in Grand Junction, Rifle, and Glenwood Springs. These hubs must be built in an area that is accessible to those in affordable housing units.   

What can you do?

• Educate yourself    

• Being houseless vs being homeless   

  • Houseless: To be without a house is to be without shelter but not necessarily without a home (Kerman, 2022)   

  • Homeless: Because home is a way to describe a community, being homeless means being without a personal community (Kerman, 2022)   

• Advocate for those who are looking for affordable housing   

• Break down your bias    

  • Think about your life, the privilege you’ve held in having secure housing. How have you believed your life was better than individuals who are unhoused or struggling with housing? 

  • What comes to mind when you think about why someone is unhoused? What do you assume? What fuels those thoughts?

Education and the ability and willingness to advocate are two key components to creating effective change. Educate yourself on the different language used for the unhoused community. Advocate for those who are unhoused or who need affordable housing. Start by breaking down your bias. Place yourself in their shoes and think about what you would need if you were in their position.

Related Content