This series of research briefs highlights the findings and policy implications of housing policy research supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, together with other related research.  The goal of the series is to help ensure that policymakers and practitioners can quickly and easily access the learning from this important body of research.

Insights briefs focus on research conducted in three areas – Affordable Housing Policy, Public Housing Transformation, and Rental Housing Preservation – as part of the Foundation’s commitment to building and deepening knowledge about affordable housing and how it matters to children, families, and communities.  Wherever possible, the findings are discussed in context with other research on similar topics.

Additional briefs will be added to this page as they become available; please check back in the coming months for updates!

Briefs on Affordable Housing Policy

1. “Don’t Put it Here!”  Do Subsidized Housing Developments Cause Nearby Property Values to Decline?

This brief synthesizes the findings of several reviews of research examining whether affordable housing causes a decline in nearby property values, with a special focus on the work of Ingrid Ellen and her colleagues who examined the impacts on nearby property values of affordable housing built or rehabilitated in New York City. 

In general, researchers find that affordable housing does not adversely impact the value of neighboring properties, and may actually improve values in some cases.  Key factors that are associated with stable or increased property values include an attractive design that blends with the surrounding neighborhood and strong property management.  Other factors are more dependent on the neighborhood: high concentrations of new or rehabilitated affordable homes can help to improve distressed areas, but in stronger neighborhoods the data suggest that concentrations of affordable housing should be avoided.

View abstracts of MacArthur-funded reports referenced in this brief:

• “Does Federally Subsidized Rental Housing Depress Neighborhood Property Values?”  by Ingrid Gould Ellen et al.

• “Nonprofit Housing and Neighborhood Spillovers” by Ingrid Gould Ellen and Ioan Voicu
  

2. The Well-Being of Low-Income Children: Does Affordable Housing Matter?

This brief profiles the research efforts of Sandra J. Newman, director of the Johns Hopkins Institute for Policy Studies, to understand how affordable housing affects the lives of its occupants.

Newman's research indicates that children in unaffordable housing markets may not fare any worse than children living in affordable housing markets; perhaps because they benefit from living in communities that have better schools and neighborhood amenities.  Newman stresses, however, that more research is needed to better understand these findings.

View abstracts of MacArthur-funded reports referenced in this brief:

• “Does Housing Matter for Poor Families? A Critical Summary of Research and Issues Still to be Resolved” by Sandra J. Newman

• “Geographic Differences in Housing Prices and the Well-Being of Children and Parents” by Sandra J. Newman, Joseph Harkness, and Scott Holupka

• “Something’s Gotta Give: Working Families and the Cost of Housing” by Barbara Lipman

Briefs on Rental Housing Preservation

1. Taking Stock: The Role of "Preservation Inventories" in Preserving Affordable Rental Housing 

This brief examines how data analysis is helping states and localities – including Cook County, Illinois; Florida; New York City; New Jersey; and Washington, DC – to preserve the stock of affordable rental housing.

"Preservation inventories" collect available data on the existing affordable rental housing stock, making it easier for communities to identify properties at risk of loss as a result of physical deterioration or the expiration of affordability limits.  Armed with this information, practitioners can act quickly to facilitate transfer of ownership, when needed to preserve affordability, and advocate for increased resources for preservation.

Upcoming installments in this series will include findings on the housing challenges facing America’s renters; insights on the key factors that put the affordable housing stock at risk; and analysis of land-use regulations and their effects on the housing market.


Readers are invited to provide feedback on these materials by sending an e-mail to chp-feedback@nhc.org. For more information on the MacArthur Foundation’s $25 million commitment to housing research, please Click Here.

---

Acknowlegements

The Center gratefully acknowledges the support of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation for these materials. The findings and conclusions they present, however, are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Foundation.