January 28, 2021

On Tuesday, President Biden signed a memorandum directing the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to mitigate racial bias in housing and advance fair housing laws. As part of this, HUD will reassess the Fair Housing Act’s disparate impact rule. “Only by recognizing and acknowledging our nation’s history of housing discrimination can we begin to lift the barriers to safe, accessible, and affordable housing,” stated acting HUD secretary Matthew Ammon in response to the directive.

Local partners in Charlotte, North Carolina, created a $58 million Housing Impact Fund, which they will use to acquire and preserve naturally occurring affordable housing (NOAH) properties in the city. NOAH properties maintain affordability through deed restrictions, while providing small, steady returns. The fund requires that any sales invest 60 percent of profits to affordable housing. The commitment reflects a shift in priorities toward housing preservation to address affordability and homelessness. “If we had just focused on new build, we would not be moving the needle,” stated LISC Charlotte executive director Ralphine Caldwell.

In Los Angeles, COVID-19 is rapidly spreading in overcrowded, multigenerational homes of predominately immigrant communities. The city has a higher share of overcrowded homes than any other major metropolitan area in the US. Many of the most affected residents do not have health benefits or paid sick days. Experts are now urging residents to wear a mask inside their homes to curb the spread. “This is particularly important for those people that live in their households with people who are very vulnerable, people who are older, people who have serious underlying health conditions that put them at great risk for serious illness from Covid-19,” said Los Angeles County’s public health director Barbara Ferrer.

Since the start of the pandemic, affordable housing asset managers—who oversee the finances of affordable housing serving five million households—shifted their focus toward the physical and financial health of their residents through resident services and building maintenance. Despite rising operating costs and constrained property revenue, housing providers recognize the direct correlation between housing and health and their role in preventing evictions while preserving their properties’ revenue.