ATPS II Presentation
Published on Feb 19, 2022
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PRESENTATION OUTLINE
Diving Deep into HCVP
Eric Herrington, Tamra Johnson, Stephanie Taylor
Good morning! My name is Eric Herrington, and I'm here today with my co-researchers Tamra Johnson and Stephanie Taylor. Welcome to our group project, "Diving Deep into HCVP."
Photo by Mihály Köles
Untitled Slide
Just 3 months ago, the city of Olympia began to dismantle what was arguably the state's most visible homeless encampment--most visible not just because of its size but also because it was a short distance away from the Washington State Capitol Campus. The camp is almost gone today, but for the years that it was there, it was a symbol of our state's continuing homelessness crisis.
Number of Homeless in 2020
According to the latest Point in Time Count data, there were almost a thousand homeless people in Thurston County in 2020. King County had over ten thousand homeless people in that same year. These numbers are likely undercounts, since Point in Time Counts miss a lot of homeless people.
There are a lot programs out there designed to combat homelessness, but today we're going to focus on just one:
There are a lot programs out there designed to combat homelessness, but today we're going to focus on just one:
Housing Choice Voucher
the Housing Choice Voucher program.
Housing Choice Voucher (HCVP)
- "decent, safe, and sanitary housing"
- Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD)
- Public Housing Authorities (PHAs)
- vouchers used to pay for housing costs (usually rent)
The Housing Choice Voucher Program (also called HCVP) was created to allow people access to "decent, safe, and sanitary housing."
It's administered by the Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) and local/state authorities called Public Housing Authorities (PHAs).
These PHAs give out vouchers that people can use to pay for housing, usually rent.
While there is evidence that vouchers do reduce homelessness, we wouldn't have a research project if the program was perfect.
It's administered by the Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) and local/state authorities called Public Housing Authorities (PHAs).
These PHAs give out vouchers that people can use to pay for housing, usually rent.
While there is evidence that vouchers do reduce homelessness, we wouldn't have a research project if the program was perfect.
Issues
- Long waitlists
- Limited time to use voucher
- Landlords may not accept vouchers
- Unsafe housing
- Vouchers may not pay enough
Waitlists for vouchers are often incredibly long, sometimes lasting years.
If a person does manage to get a voucher, they have a limited time to use it before it expires.
Landlords may also not accept vouchers.
Even if the landlord does accept vouchers, the house still may be unsafe even with an inspection.
And even if everything else goes right, the voucher may not pay enough. Vouchers only pay for part of a person's housing cost. They don't touch other important costs tenants have to pay, like credit inspections and security deposits.
With all of these issues, it's no surprise that the HCVP has contributed to long-standing historical injustices in housing, as Stephanie is going to show.
If a person does manage to get a voucher, they have a limited time to use it before it expires.
Landlords may also not accept vouchers.
Even if the landlord does accept vouchers, the house still may be unsafe even with an inspection.
And even if everything else goes right, the voucher may not pay enough. Vouchers only pay for part of a person's housing cost. They don't touch other important costs tenants have to pay, like credit inspections and security deposits.
With all of these issues, it's no surprise that the HCVP has contributed to long-standing historical injustices in housing, as Stephanie is going to show.
"Shanty Town"
"The First Tiny Homes in Seattle"
Next slide when:
"Notice how I did not say affordable housing unit."
"Notice how I did not say affordable housing unit."
Untitled Slide
"Does that sound familiar?"
Twice moved, tenants asks Council for help
What's the point of the research?
- What obstacles do HCV holders face locally in the HCV process, and what are the root causes of those obstacles?
- How do Washington state PHAs uphold racial equity in housing?
All of this was from national data, not data specific to areas within Washington state specifically. So, it's very likely, then, that not all of the issues we identified here actually exist locally.
This is why we need to find out what obstacles that HCV holders face locally (in Thurston and King Counties) in the HCV process, and what the root causes of those obstacles might be.
We also need to find out whether Washington State PHAs uphold racial equity in housing.
In other words,
- What obstacles identified in the literature about the HCV program nationwide apply here in Thurston and King?
- Do voucher applicants get the specific assistance they need to get "decent, safe, and sanitary housing"?
This is why we need to find out what obstacles that HCV holders face locally (in Thurston and King Counties) in the HCV process, and what the root causes of those obstacles might be.
We also need to find out whether Washington State PHAs uphold racial equity in housing.
In other words,
- What obstacles identified in the literature about the HCV program nationwide apply here in Thurston and King?
- Do voucher applicants get the specific assistance they need to get "decent, safe, and sanitary housing"?
Approaches
- mixed methods
- interview Housing Authority leadership
- analyze data from HUD
conducted in-depth interviews with Housing Authority leadership
supplemented interviews with data on households that exited HCVP with housing, publicly available on HUD
supplemented interviews with data on households that exited HCVP with housing, publicly available on HUD
So what does this mean?
Interviews and data compilation
Qualitative
- Housing is unavailable for voucher holders
- Application process may be too complicated
- Not enough money to pay for vouchers for all who need them
Quantitative
- Provided by HUD in yearly surveys
- 74 data points collected
- Census tracts for Thurston and King counties
What do we do?
Alright, so we know a little more about the unique housing issues in Thurston and King Counties. The question is--What do we do now?
We've found a couple of solutions to improve the HCVP.
We've found a couple of solutions to improve the HCVP.
Housing Trust Funds (HTF)
One common complaint we heard was that PHAs don't have enough funding. The HCVP is paid for by Congress, but another source of funding that PHAs could use is a Housing Trust Fund or HTF: a fund made specifically to pay for affordable housing.
Housing Trust Funds aren't dependent on federal money, which only comes in limited batches per year, so they're a much more reliable funding source for PHAs.
Housing Trust Funds aren't dependent on federal money, which only comes in limited batches per year, so they're a much more reliable funding source for PHAs.
Photo by 401(K) 2013
Expand HTFs
- expand HTF funding bases
- create HTFs in cities without them
HTF funding bases could be expanded to give the funds more streams of income.
Cities without HTFs could also look into creating their own, allowing for a fund that is locally controlled and specified to local conditions.
Cities without HTFs could also look into creating their own, allowing for a fund that is locally controlled and specified to local conditions.
Photo by 401(K) 2013
3D-printed housing
Another idea is more novel: using 3D-printed housing.
The image you see here is a set of tiny houses built by a 3D-printing construction company called Icon. They used a large, robotic printer--
The image you see here is a set of tiny houses built by a 3D-printing construction company called Icon. They used a large, robotic printer--
Untitled Slide
Like this--that "printed" houses using concrete as "ink."
3D-Printed Housing
- cheap
- quick production
There hasn't been a whole lot of research done, but the research we do have says that 3D-printed housing is much cheaper and quicker than traditional construction. We think this would be an ideal way to boost housing stock.
Again, these aren't the only solutions out there. But the amount of homelessness in our state is a symptom of how utterly our housing system has failed. We hope these solutions may be able to alleviate that suffering and ensure all people's right to a roof over their head.
Again, these aren't the only solutions out there. But the amount of homelessness in our state is a symptom of how utterly our housing system has failed. We hope these solutions may be able to alleviate that suffering and ensure all people's right to a roof over their head.
Questions?
And that's the end--any questions?
