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Income-based housing benefit: Difference between revisions
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federal legislation from U.S. Representative Joe Crowley that would provide refundable tax credits to renters spending >30% of income.<br/> [http://www.timesledger.com/stories/2017/34/crowleyrents_2017_08_25_q.html. http://www.timesledger.com/stories/2017/34/crowleyrents_2017_08_25_q.html. ]
== EITC (Earned-Income Tax Credit) Housing Supplement ==
[Dreier 2016].
"Congress should revise the EITC’s benefit levels to account for differences in the cost of living, particularly housing costs. This approach would reach many more families and require much less bureaucracy than the housing voucher program. [http://www.huduser.gov/Periodicals/CITYSCPE/VOL5NUM2/dolbeare.pdf Cushing Dolbeare], founder of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, first proposed this idea in 2001, and several [http://www.brookings.edu/research/reports/2003/10/childrenfamilies-stegman researchers] at the University of North Carolina explored it two years later, but it gained no political traction at the time. As the housing crisis has worsened, and the EITC has gained in popularity, it is time to give the idea a second look, and make it simpler.
"A formula similar to HUD’s FMRs can be used to determine the size of the EITC housing supplement in each area. Like HUD’s FMRs, the EITC housing supplement would vary from area to area depending on market conditions.
"The EITC serves a much wider range of families than the housing voucher program, including more who work and more who earn over the minimum wage. As a result, if the goal is to reduce rent payments to no more than 30 percent of household income, the subsidy required for most EITC recipients would be significantly less than the typical per-household voucher subsidy.
"The EITC housing supplement could be set at the difference between 30 percent of the household’s income (including the EITC benefit) and the local fair market rent. In this way, the benefit would be tied to a family’s earnings as well as their housing costs. If a household’s income is greater than the difference between 30 percent of household income and the local FMR, the family would not quality for the housing component. It is likely that a significant number of EITC recipient households would not qualify for the housing supplement, because they already pay less than 30 percent of income for rent. But for those who face a serious income/rent squeeze, the supplement would make a significant difference.
"Another plus is the simplicity of implementation. HUD’s housing voucher program is administered through local government housing agencies, which take applications, make sure that families meet the income guidelines, establish a waiting list, and inform participants of the maximum subsidy they qualify for. (Participants can rent apartments above the FMR if they are willing to pay more from their own pockets). By contrast, the EITC housing supplement program would require little bureaucracy. To receive the EITC, families simply fill out an income tax form. Depending on their income, they either pay less in taxes or receive a reimbursement check in the mail.
"Moreover, the EITC is an invisible subsidy. Just as it works now, landlords would not know whether would-be renters are receiving any EITC benefits, including the housing supplement. It could thus have the effect of reducing discrimination against low-income households with subsidies."
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*Bipartisan Policy Center (2013). "[http://bipartisanpolicy.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/default/files/BPC_Housing%20Report_web_0.pdf Housing America’s Future: New Directions for National Policy.]" February 2013.<br/> [http://bipartisanpolicy.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/default/files/BPC_Housing%20Report_web_0.pdf http://bipartisanpolicy.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/default/files/BPC_Housing%20Report_web_0.pdf].<br/>
*Blumgart, Jake. "[http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2016/07/it_s_time_for_universal_housing_vouchers.html What an Affordable Housing Moonshot Would Look Like. Too many Americans live on the edge of eviction. Could this ambitious plan fix the problem?]" ''Slate, ''July 1 2016.<br/> [http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2016/07/it_s_time_for_universal_housing_vouchers.html http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2016/07/it_s_time_for_universal_housing_vouchers.html].<br/>
*BT Online. "[http://www.businesstoday.in/sectors/infra/house-rent-government-vouchers-payment/story/247697.html Government might soon pay your house rent through vouchers in 100 Indian cities.]" March 9th, 2017. [http://www.businesstoday.in/sectors/infra/house-rent-government-vouchers-payment/story/247697.html http://www.businesstoday.in/sectors/infra/house-rent-government-vouchers-payment/story/247697.html].
*
Dreier, Peter (2016). "[https://democracyjournal.org/arguments/housing-and-the-working-poor/ Housing and the Working Poor: Sky-high rents, not enough affordable homes—that’s our housing crisis in a nutshell. Here’s one idea to help the millions who can barely afford to keep a roof over their head]." ''Democracy Journal, ''29 March 2016. <br/> [https://democracyjournal.org/arguments/housing-and-the-working-poor/. https://democracyjournal.org/arguments/housing-and-the-working-poor/. ]
*Hertz, Daniel. [http://cityobservatory.org/make-housing-vouchers-an-entitlement-we-can-afford-it/ "Make housing vouchers an entitlement—we can afford it."] City Observatory, 2016-01-05. [http://cityobservatory.org/make-housing-vouchers-an-entitlement-we-can-afford-it/ http://cityobservatory.org/make-housing-vouchers-an-entitlement-we-can-afford-it/]<br/>
*Hertz, Daniel. [http://cityobservatory.org/low-income-housing-tax/ "Why not make housing assistance to the low-income as easy as assistance to the high-income?"] City Observatory, 2016-01-21. [http://cityobservatory.org/low-income-housing-tax/. http://cityobservatory.org/low-income-housing-tax/. ]<br/>
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