HOUSING

Housing costs account for a large and growing share of household budgets. Access to affordable housing varies across income levels, geography, family composition, and more. Communities of color faced historic exclusions from home ownership or affordable quality rental accommodation that continue to impact equitable access today. Our research shows how housing policy can be an important anti-poverty tool. We examine how public supports such as the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program, the nation’s largest form of rental assistance, can significantly reduce poverty if all who are eligible receive it, how a Renter’s Credit can improve housing affordability, and how utilities assistance programs, such as the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), helps millions of families heat and cool their homes throughout the year. Housing also impacts employment, health, and other outcomes.

In addition to our federal housing policy work, our New York City research identifies the impact of forced moves and evictions on families and neighborhoods. Our housing work considers the impact of past policy choices, current program impacts, and proposals for policy change, with a particular focus on how expanded access to affordable, quality, and stable housing can benefit families with low and moderate incomes and for historically underserved or economically vulnerable groups.