The Need for Affordable Housing

According to “The State of the Nation’s Housing 2021” by Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, the pandemic and accompanying financial hardships have left millions of households in distress. Over 46 percent of all renters in the U.S. pay more than 30 percent of their income on housing, and over 24 percent of all renters are severely rent burdened, meaning they pay over 50 percent of their income in rent.1

As the need for affordable housing grows, the supply continues to shrink. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, the U.S. has a shortage of 7 million affordable rental homes for extremely low income renters; “only 36 affordable and available rental homes exist for every 100 extremely low-income renter households.”2 The affordable housing supply cannot meet the demand of low-income renters in every U.S. state. Nearly all Housing Credit properties are fully occupied, many with lengthy waiting lists.3

In addition, there is a significant need for workforce housing in many communities - housing necessary for businesses to grow. According to the Center for Housing Policy, many employers report that a lack of affordable housing makes it more difficult to recruit and retain employees. In addition to workforce housing, our aging population is causing the demand for independent senior housing to increase sharply.

Continued production of affordable housing via the Housing Credit program is instrumental to addressing these issues. Stable, affordable housing is necessary for basic well-being. The pandemic has highlighted how vital affordable, quality housing is to health and well-being.1

Out Of Reach

• In most areas of the U.S., a family of four with a poverty-level household income can afford a monthly rent of no more than $694, assuming the household can spend as much as 30% of its income on housing.2

• The average monthly fair market rents for a one-bedroom or twobedroom rental home are $1,105 and $1,342, respectively.2

• More than 40% of wage earners cannot afford a modest onebedroom rental home at the fair market rent working one full-time job. Nearly 60% of wage earners cannot afford a modest twobedroom rental home working one full-time job.2

1 “The State of the Nation’s Housing 2021,” Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University

2 “Out of Reach 2022: The High Cost of Housing,” National Low Income Housing Coalition

3 “Affordability Housing CRedit Study,” CohnReznick (November 2021)