The Silent Housing Crisis | Page 5

➧ Consider these facts: n Housing affordability is a significant n A major factor contributing to this and growing challenge for millions of “rent squeeze” is the acute shortage American families who live in housing of rental homes affordable to families that exceeds their means. Nearly 20 with the lowest incomes. For every 100 million families spend more than half extremely low-income families who their income on housing and more rent, there are just 29 affordable units than one-third of all U.S. households, available in the marketplace, translat- almost 41 million in total, pay in excess ing into a total shortfall of more than 8 of 30 percent of their incomes just million units.4 The production of new to cover housing costs.1 While our rental homes that are affordable to nation’s lowest-income households those at the lowest end of the income have been hit the hardest, over the past spectrum is woefully insufficient. decade, some of the sharpest increases in housing cost burdens have been among moderate-income families.2 n For renter households the affordability ...according to the Urban Institute, 62 percent of new housing demand will be rental during this decade (2010-2019). situation is particularly alarming. The percentage of cost-burdened renter households has doubled over the past 50 years. More than 11 million renter households, constituting 27 percent of all renters, now pay more than half their incomes for housing. In addition, 20.6 million renters, or half of the total renter population, pay in excess of 30 percent.3 These rent burdens are national in scope, affecting families in rural, suburban, and inner-city areas. Today, rents continue to rise in communities throughout the country, often forcing many lower-income renters to forego purchasing nutritious food, seeking medical help when a health issue arises, or buying clothing and other essentials for their families. n Federal rental assistance provides much-needed help for lower-income families, but only about one in five households eligible for assistance actually receives it.5 In many communities, federal rental assistance is often allocated through w