Publications

This report, prepared for the What Works Collaborative, outlines a series of non-statutory policy options that could be adopted by HUD to imporve access to mainstream supportive services by residents of subsidized housing. These policy options address shared challenges and constraints on the use of common space to deliver sevices to residents and members of the surrounding community, that affect family and senior properties across the country.

This publication reviews recent studies that investigate the ways in which affordable housing can encourage local economic development.  The research reviewed in this brief demonstrates that building and operating affordable housing increases spending and employment in the surrounding economy, acts as an important source of revenue for local governments, helps local businesses attract and retain employees, and reduces the likelihood of foreclosure and its associated costs.

The primary goal of affordable housing is to lower the monthly housing costs for lower- to moderate- income families. But research shows that affordable housing development also drives local economic growth. This fact sheet summarizes the different ways in which affordable housing can contribute to rising employment and economic recovery.

The Conference Proceedings summarize the Partners in Innovation National Symposium and Policy Forum, hosted by the National Housing Conference and Center for Housing Policy on September 27 and 28, 2010 in Denver, Colorado. The events brought together more than 200 leading practitioners and policymakers from across the country to discuss strategies or developing and preserving transit-accessible housing that includes homes affordable to low-and moderate- income individuals and families. Throughout both days’ sessions, participants returned to these themes while describing policy innovations, sharing case studies, and exchanging stories and strategies.

This brief summarizes three recent reports that test the hypothesis that homeownership directly leads to better educational, health, and behavioral outcomes for children.

Applying rigorous methodologies to isolate the potential effects of homeownership, all three reports conclude that homeownership, per se, does not lead to better outcomes for children. Instead, it appears to be the characteristics of the families that become homeowners and perhaps the stability associated with owning a home that explain the association between homeownership and better outcomes for children.