Low-income housing is scarce and costly

Housing for low-income renters is becoming increasingly scarce, and what rental housing exists is becoming increasingly costly, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) reports.

In 2009, 5.6 million households with incomes below the poverty level paid at least half their income for rent and basic utilities, newly-released Census data show. That’s 1.7 million more households than paid that share of their income in 2003.

Job losses account in part for the 1.7 million increase. A major factor is that while home prices have fallen by nearly 30% since the market peaked in 2006, rents have actually risen by an average of 11% over the same period. Federal rental assistance programs have helped, but funding for them has fallen far behind the growing need.

One indication of the deepening crisis is that in 2009 about 325,000 children lived at least part of a year in a homeless shelter, up 12% since 2007.

“Two or three times as many children were homeless if you count those living temporarily in hotels or motels, doubled-up with other families, or on the street…separate data from the (U.S.) Department of Education suggest,” the CBPP reports.