Housing & Community Development

MARCH 2019 | IMPACTINGOURFUTURE.COM

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Housing & Community Development

Dive into the pivotal moment Jon Bon Jovi knew he had to help end homelessness

DISCOVER how you can help Habitat for Humanity work towards fixing the housing crisis

LEARN about the nationwide housing crisis is happening right in our own backyards

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MEDIAPLANET

The next decade is going to be defined by advancements in clean energy.

Page 7

in this issue

Studies show affordable housing is more cost-efficient than the criminalization of homelessness.

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State and local governments are working together to remedy the nationwide housing crisis.

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How Affordable Housing Accessibility Is The Ladder To Success Housing authorities provide affordable homes to more than 7.4 million people and more still need assistance.

Over the last century, housing authorities (HAs) have been a primary portal to affordable housing for families across the country.

Today, more than 3,000 HAs provide affordable homes to more than 7.4 million people.

The roles of HAs HAs serve as owners of housing and/or provide rental assistance to private landlords on behalf of eligible families. As owners, HAs operate units in a variety of affordable housing programs: public housing, project-based housing and housing created via the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program. As rental assistance administrators, HAs

work with private landlords who receive subsidies to pay a portion of the rent of tenants participating in the voucher program.

HAs also work with local housing partners in the public and private sectors to preserve and build new housing. In Rhode Island, the East Greenwich Housing Authority worked with developers and the community to build new homes for families earning less than 50 percent of the area median income. The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara (CA) partnered with a charitable foundation and some private-sector firms to create the Golden Inn and Village, offering multi-generational housing and services for seniors.

Accessibility is crucial Access to affordable housing is

Adrianne Todman CEO of the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials

vital to success. Cynthia from Austin, TX and her daughters were living with family when she received her housing voucher. Five years later, she finished her bachelor’s and master’s degree in public administration, received a promotion at work and saved enough for a down payment on a home.

Being able to pay a reasonable rent

and provide her children with a safe home offered the stability she needed to thrive.

Cynthia joins millions of Americans who have relied on housing programs provided by HAs. These programs help young adults achieve their dreams, seniors or persons with disabilities live with dignity and give homeless families and individuals a place to call home.

While these programs provide needed housing to millions of families, there are more who still struggle with housing insecurity.

In 2015, 8.3 million low income households suffered from severe rental cost-burdens (paying more than 50 percent of their income for rent) or lived in inadequate or overcrowded conditions. The need is great, but resources are scarce.

Only 1 in 4 families who are eligible

for subsidized housing have access to it. Waiting lists for public housing units and vouchers span years.

Many shelters and transitional houses are at capacity.

How you can help While affordable housing progra ms a re un de r fu nde d a n d sometimes maligned, the help they provide is both real and consequential. For almost a hundred years, housing authorities have provided permanent housing to people who reached out to them for help. Though they may not be able to house all those in need, HAs champion local affordable housing and strong partners in your community. Please lend your voice to support their programs.

They have been there for us and our loved ones, we should now be there for them. n

Publisher Ali Amanda Ippolito Business Developer Jordan Hernandez Managing Director Luciana Olson Designers Tiffany Pryor, Lee Miller Copy Editor Rachael Witte Director of Sales Shannon Ruggiero Director of Business Development Jourdan Snyder Director of Product Faye Godfrey Lead Editor Mina Fanous Production Manager Josh Rosman Content Strategist Vanessa Rodriguez Cover Photo Doron Gild All photos are credited to Getty Images unless otherwise specified. This section was created by Mediaplanet and did not involve USA Today.

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Affordable Housing for Aging Americans As people are living longer, the housing crisis is expanding to an older demographic.

America is going through a major demographic change. By 2030, more than 1 in 5 people in the United States will be 65 or older. By 2035, older adults are expected to outnumber children for the first time ever. One major issue for this abundant aging population is affordable housing.

Many older adults experience serious housing problems because of high housing costs and inaccessible home design features.

Housing is the single largest expense among the elderly and almost one-third of U.S. households spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing.

A greater demand Affordable housing is a corner-

stone of livable communities.

Along with amenities like access to health care, transportation options, public parks and gathering places, affordable housing makes a community welcoming to people of all ages, income levels and abilities. At AARP, we include affordable housing as one of the criteria in our Livability Index, which scores neighborhoods and communities across the United States. In order to receive top marks for livability, a community must meet the needs of all residents, including senior citizens.

A wider range of housing options are required — ­ not just single family homes and large apartment complexes. AARP’s vision of a Livable Community incorporates a range of options including creative and innovative housing solutions. These may be tiny homes and micro apartments, options for shared

housing, m ul tigenerational housing or modifications that can make a home safe for residents of all ages.

“By 2035, older adults are expected to outnumber children for the first time ever.”

The long road ahead There isn’t a quick fix to create and maintain affordable housing for older Americans. Rather, we need solutions at all levels of government and community.

Tax credits and government housing subsidies are one piece of the puzzle and especially important for older renters with incomes below 50 percent of the area median income. Many state and local governments are also stepping up with trust funds to create affordable housing. Within the private sector, both Microsoft and the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative recently announced that they will invest millions in preserving and building affordable housing.

Even individual homeowners can play a role in increasing affordable housing by building an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) on their property. ADUs are smaller structures, like carriage houses or basement apartments. An ADU can provide housing for an older family member, rental income or even be a smaller, more manageable home for the original home-

owner. Many communities are now revising their building codes to allow for ADUs and increase available housing.

Providing housing that will meet the needs of our changing population will require support from every level of government.

We will need to be creative and rethink the types of housing that each community offers. The good news is that communities that embrace these changes will become more vibrant and welcoming to everyone — not just older adults.

We at AARP are encouraged to see innovations in housing emerging across the country and we are eager to work with communities to ensure that affordable housing is available for those who need it. n Rodney Harrell, Ph.D., Director of Livability Thought Leadership, AARP

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It’s Time to Address Our Nationwide Housing Crisis There is no greater challenge facing our nation than the one that literally hits home for millions of families.

From coast to coast and everywhere in between, we are experiencing a nationwide housing crisis.

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s the cost of living continues to rise, and federal housing resources decline, more and more Americans simply cannot afford to pay their rent. Many are forced into homelessness. This crisis does not discriminate by age, race or gender, and we all have a moral obligation to address it.

Call to action Congress has yet to step up to provide real solutions for millions of Americans in need. It is time

for that to change. We must start by raising awareness on a nationwide scale to show federal elected officials that they can no longer ignore the crisis taking place in their communities.

More U.S. households — approximately 43 million — rent their homes now than at any other point since 1965, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of Census Bureau housing data.

Nearly 40 percent of those households are rent-burdened, meaning that their homes are unaffordable

because they pay more than 30 percent of their income on housing costs.

The situation is particularly dire for low-income families. A Harvard University study found that approximately 80 percent of all renters who make less than $30,000 annually are rent-burdened. And let’s be clear: when f amil ies are rent- burdened, they also struggle to afford basic necessities like food, health care and child care. Even if they avoid homelessness, they are trapped

in a cycle of poverty that cuts off opportunities for them and their children. In a country as rich in resources as ours, this should be unacceptable.

It’s happening right in your own backyard It must not be forgotten that this is a problem that affects rural and urban areas alike. Consider Greene County, a collection of small towns and villages in upstate New York located hundreds of miles north of New York City. Census data shows

that residents in Greene County are under the same pressure as those in the Bronx with 61 percent of renters in both communities considered rent-burdened.

We can only address this crisis if more federal resources are devoted to increasing the supply of housing for low-income families and those Americans in need of affordable housing. According to the National Multifamily Housing Council, demand for rental housing is outpacing supply by as much as 30 percent annually.

But the reality is that those federal resources cannot be unlocked until Congress steps up. That is why NYSAFAH is working with our partners across the country as part of the Council of Independent State Housing Associations ( C I S H A) t o r a i s e a w a re n e s s nationally and help federal officials understand that they must act now. n Jolie Milstein, President and CEO, NYSAFAH

How Affordable Housing Is Shifting to House an Aging Demographic Seniors often can’t afford assisted living. A new property management paradigm means they won’t have to.

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very day 10,000 baby boomers turn 65. In California the senior population will likely double by 2030, leaving perhaps a million people needing

assistance to care for themselves.

For seniors in affordable housing, assisted living can be out of reach.

“People are what we call ‘trapped in the gap,’” explains Meredith Chillemi, director of aging and education services at LifeSTEPS, Inc. “They have a high rent compared to their income, but don’t qualify for Medi-Cal.” Bridging the gap Chillemi and LifeSTEPS have partnered with USA Properties, a

developer specializing in building and managing affordable family and senior communities, to launch the Older Adult Services RN Program in the Sacramento area. The program makes a fulltime registered nurse available to three communities to provide medical services.

“We’re passionate about senior housing,” says Geoff Brown, president and CEO of USA Properties Fund Inc. “Our residents cannot afford assisted living. A program

that helps them age in place is a pretty cost-effective way to deal with that.”

The future “The RN Program can be easily replicated throughout the country in affordable housing,” Chillemi says. “It’s not that pricey compared to the cost of future health care savings. We’re also meeting financial goals as a society, improving population health, and helping people have dignity;

everyone’s worst fear is going to that nursing home.”

“This is just going to be a big challenge for our society,” says Brown. “We want to scale the program in terms of getting funding.

We want to be able to do more senior projects that incorporate this, to find a consistent funding source that will believe in it and say, ‘What can we do to create more communities like this’?” n Jeff Somers

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Teaching Kids to Manage Money Unbeknownst to them, young people regularly make financial decisions that can have a huge impact on their adult lives.

Problems can start as soon as they leave home when student loans become available and credit card offers pile up. Most schools don’t teach kids how to manage their personal finances, so they often aren’t prepared to navigate the myriad financial decisions they will face in their lifetime. Parents can fill the gap left by curriculum by helping kids begin to make some of their own smart financial decisions while still at home.

In a classroom, financial decisions are theoretical. However, when managing real money, they feel the consequences.

When children earn money from jobs or chores, they learn to connect spending with the work that preceded it.

They need guidance Pa re n t s c a n o f f e r k i d s a h a n d s - o n approach to learning to budget. For e x am p le , b e f o re s ho p pi n g fo r g i fts around the holidays, they might help their child create a budget to ensure they can afford a gift for everyone on their list. When grocery shopping, kids can pick and purchase their own food. They can learn to prioritize items and if name brand or generic brands make more sense for their budget, as well as learn about unit prices or consider sales tax.

Help for parents to help their kids Many kids need reinforced guidance to make saving a regular habit. Greenlight lets parents choose an interest rate on savings — paid by the parents — that is well above any rate they would find at a bank. Kids learn about compound interest from seeing their own savings grow meaningfully.

We started Greenlight to help parents raise financially smart kids. With Greenlight, parents manage chores, automate allowances, set spending and ATM limits and encourage saving towards goals. Parents can provide their children with real world experience to help their future.

Tim Sheehan, Co-Founder and CEO, Greenlight

Jon Bon Jovi Aims to End Homelessness in Southern Nevada Years ago, when Jon Bon Jovi was staying in a hotel in Philadelphia, he looked out of the window and saw a homeless man sleeping on a grate. It upset him. After all, this was not what our forefathers imagined when they built this country.

“I wanted to learn how I could help ­— homelessness doesn’t require a doctor, a scientist or a cure — you need money, motivation and passion, and I knew I could help.”

Since that pivotal moment, Bon Jovi has worked tirelessly to fight against homelessness and hunger through the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation (JBJSF). Over the last 12 years, the organization has provided funding to community partners across the United States to build over 600 units of affordable and supportive housing.

Additionally, the organization has two JBJ Soul Kitchens in New Jersey where customers are served a delicious restaurant-style meal regardless of their ability to pay.

Greater connections Bon Jovi says that the faces of hunger and homelessness are not always ones that you’d expect.

“These issues affect your neighbors, your family members — anyone from your community. Everyone is really just one life event away from finding themselves in need of some support.”

Making a difference Recently, the JBJSF has put its attention on the homeless youth in Southern Nevada. After attending two Southern Nevada Youth Homelessness Summits in 2017 and 2018 to gain a better sense of the community, learn about the plans to address

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the issue and understand how the organization could assist local programs like the Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth and Sands Care, the JBJSF pledged a matching grant up to $100,000 to fund a new facility providing beds for homeless youth.

Bon Jovi says it’s the people that keep him committed to helping

remedy homelessness. “I am inspired by the individuals, families, single moms, veterans and youth who come in off the street looking to turn their lives around and are brave enough to ask for a hand. These are the people that keep me going.” n Susan Guillory

MEDIAPLANET | 7

The 2020s Will Be Known As “The Solar Energy Decade”

We Can Make Housing More Affordable in the United States

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A family shouldn’t have to spend more than 30 percent of their income on a home. Today, nearly 19 million U.S. households pay half or more of their income for a place to live.

Solar energy can stimulate the economy, provide low-cost energy and combat climate change.

S olar energy has long enjoyed popular support, polling consistently at a 90 percent approval rating. However, this popularity among consumers hasn’t translated into support from lawmakers until recently. Elected officials are becoming more assertive in their support as it’s evident that it can grow the economy, provide low-cost energy and addresses the broad public desire to confront climate change.

As demand for carbon-free electricity grows, it’s clear the solar industry is capable of meeting these needs.

Forecasters show that within the next five years, the total amount of solar panels installed in the United States will more than double, creating thousands of new jobs and generating hundreds of billions of dollars in economic activity.

A look back To properly understand where things are headed, look at the last six months. In October, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change concluded that limiting global warming would require “rapid and far-reaching” transitions in land, energy, industry, buildings, transport and cities. In December, a U.S. government interagency research program found that “more frequent and intense extreme weather and climate-related events, as well as changes in average climate conditions, are expected to continue to damage infrastructure, ecosystems and social systems.”

These findings resonated with the public. We recently released polling showing that 71 percent of all voters,

including 63 percent of all Republicans, positively view solar power’s address of climate change. The Conservative Energy Network and CRES Forum, a non-partisan, nonprofit organization, found that 81 percent of U.S. voters across all parties said they would vote for elected officials who support clean energy development.

The midterm elections demonstrated that climate change and clean energy are powerful issues, and despite an assumption that it’s only on the Democratic agenda, Republicans have been proposing advancing clean energy and addressing climate change as well.

The numbers In many parts of the country, solar is the lowest-cost form of energy. Over the last decade, solar prices have dropped by more than 70 percent, making investing in solar a no-brainer.

With 10,000 solar businesses in the United States and nearly 243,000 solar workers, the transition to a clean energy economy is inevitable and underway. We believe solar can account for 15 percent of all electricity generation by 2030, up from about 2.5 percent today.

In the same way that the advent of the internet defined the 1990s and smartphone advances have defined the 2010s, we expect the 2020s to be “The Solar Energy Decade.” This will require smart policies, open markets and private sector commitment. It’s rewarding to know that leaders in both political parties and the public agree and are advocating for greater use of solar power. n Abigail Ross Hopper, President and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA)

At Habitat for Humanity, every day we see how families’ lives can improve when they have an affordable place to call home.

When they no longer have to worry about their rent or mortgage payments spiking, they don’t live in constant fear of having to uproot their family. With greater financial stability and the foundation an affordable home can offer, they won’t have to choose between keeping a roof over their heads or food on the table.

A home shouldn’t be a luxury The United States is in the midst of an affordable housing crisis. Rent and homeownership costs are skyrocketing, while wages are not. Everywhere you look — cities, suburbs, rural areas — the stability that a consistent home can offer remains out of reach for many families.

One in 6 families are being forced to choose between paying for housing and paying for groceries, life-saving medicine or transportation. We believe that everyone should have access to affordable housing, and we know that more must be done to make that a reality. Now is the time to implement new ideas at the local, state and national levels to improve access to affordable homes. At Habitat, we are raising our voices, our expertise and our leadership to find and create policy solutions to offer Americans access to homeownership. But we cannot do it alone.

Help is needed For decades, volunteers have lent their hands at Habitat build sites. Now we’re asking for your voice. By calling your policymakers at the local, state and national level and telling them to support policies that will improve housing affordability, we can elevate housing affordability to a top concern. Our collective voice can make a profound impact. Please get connected with your local Habitat for Humanity to learn how you can have an impact in your own community.

Adrienne Goolsby, Vice President, Habitat for Humanity International

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