New Updates on The Edge

New on The Edge

Message from PD&R Leadership:
HUD Policy Changes to Improve Access to Low-Poverty Neighborhoods
Recent research confirms that low-income children are more likely to go to college and have significantly higher earnings as adults if they are raised in low-poverty neighborhoods. Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research Katherine O’Regan discusses how two impending changes to HUD policy — the use of Small Area Fair Market Rents for the Housing Choice Voucher program and Small Difficult Development Areas for the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program — aim to improve access to low-poverty neighborhoods for assisted households.

Research:
Housing Problems of Very Low-Income Renter Households
Every other year, HUD conducts a nationwide assessment of severe housing problems facing very low-income renter households. The most recent assessment, Worst Case Housing Needs: 2015 Report to Congress, uses 2013 American Housing Survey data to investigate causes and trends in worst case housing needs between 2011 and 2013.

In Practice:
Nashville's New Housing Trust Fund for Affordable Housing
In July 2013, the Metropolitan Council of Nashville and Davidson County created an affordable housing trust fund, the Barnes Fund for Affordable Housing, in response to a decline in housing affordability. The Fund has financed 14 affordable single room occupancy units that are complete and fully leased, and 29 additional affordable units are under construction.

Trending:
An overview of HUD's Smoke-Free Housing Initiative: An Interview with Peter J. Ashley
In response to several concerns about tobacco smoke, including the health effects of secondhand smoke and the risk of fatal residential fires, HUD encourages adoption of smoke-free policies in HUD-assisted multifamily housing. Peter J. Ashley, Director of the Policy and Standards Division of HUD's Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes, details the methods by which HUD supports smoke-free policies and describes how collaboration with other federal agencies advances HUD’s efforts.

Policy Update:
Federal Disaster Policy: Toward a More Resilient Future
In the wake of increasingly frequent natural disasters, rapid urbanization, climate change, and globalization, the need to promote resilience in disaster policies is more urgent. In response, federal disaster policy has become more proactive — promoting predisaster mitigation planning and enhancing resilience in postdisaster planning and recovery.

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 annual shipments, placements, and the average sales price of manufactured homes.