New Updates on the Edge

New on The Edge

Message from PD&R Leadership:
Housing Native Americans in Today's Self-Determination Environment
Native Americans living in tribal communities face unique, complex housing and community development challenges, as explained in the latest issue of Evidence Matters. Director of PD&R's Research Utilization Division Rachelle Levitt describes how, under a framework of self-determination, HUD works with tribes to develop and implement local solutions to these challenges.

Research:
Discrimination in the Rental Housing Market Against People Who Are Deaf or Use Wheelchairs
Since Congress amended the Fair Housing Act in 1988 to expand its protections to people with disabilities, complaints of discrimination on the basis of disability have become the most common discrimination claim received by private fair housing organizations and federal and local housing agencies. A PD&R-sponsored study released in June 2015 uses a paired-testing methodology to estimate the prevalence of discrimination in the private rental market against people who are deaf or hard of hearing and people who use a wheelchair.

In Practice:
Greater Minnesota Housing Fund: Supporting Workforce Housing
The Greater Minnesota Housing Fund (GMHF), Minnesota's largest community development financial institution, is helping to address the state's shortage of workforce housing. GMHF created an employer-assisted housing program that unites community leaders, businesses, and other resources to provide affordable housing, such as the 41-unit River Falls Estates.

Trending:
America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2015
The latest in an ongoing series of reports compiled by the Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2015, presents statistical findings that illustrate how U.S. children and families are currently faring and examines how these indicators are changing over time. These findings allow advocates and policymakers to better address the needs of families and children.

Policy Update:
Who Counts? Identifying Native American Populations
Obstacles to obtaining accurate data for American Indian and Alaska Native populations, such as logistical and cultural barriers, can impact the financial aid distributed to tribes by HUD and hinder the development of evidence-based policy. Improving access to accurate data on these communities — for example through partnerships between external investigators and tribal communities — is essential to better understanding their needs.

Spotlight on PD&R Data:
U.S. Housing Market Conditions
PD&R's U.S. Housing Market Conditions (USHMC) website contains national, regional, state, metropolitan, and local data and analysis in one location. Featured USHMC charts highlight changes in the annual average interest rate, effective rate, fees and charges, and term to maturity for conventional closed mortgages.