Out of Reach

Preface
by Andrew Cuomo, Secretary, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

It has been more than fifty years since America established the national goal of a safe, decent home and a  suitable living environment for all. But despite the passage of time, the need for affordable housing – the gap between the cost of housing and what families can afford to pay – remains one of the most serious challenges we face as a nation.

Under the leadership of the Clinton-Gore Administration, we have made great progress in creating housing opportunities for Americans in both rural and urban communities. The homeownership rate stands at its highest point in our nation’s history. We have begun the transformation of public housing. We won the first new housing vouchers in five years, and, with the two strongest budgets in more than a decade, HUD is back in the housing business.

But for all the progress, there is much more to do. It’s a cruel irony that while the strong economy has brought prosperity and opportunity to millions, it is also driving up rents in many communities. The number of households with worst case housing needs – those who pay more than 50 percent of their income for housing or live in substandard housing – has grown to a record 5.4 million households. Waiting lists for housing assistance are longer than ever. And there are still too many who are without shelter – an estimated 600,000 homeless persons on any given night.

In this time of economic prosperity, there is no better time than now to invest in those who have not yet experienced the rewards of our great national wealth. All of our experience shows that safe, decent, and affordable housing is the key to family well-being, educational success, and productive work.

Housing assistance helps parents provide better nutrition and health care for their children. It is the key to helping elderly people remain secure in their homes, to helping families remain in stable housing so that their children can learn in school, and to freeing up income so that workers can afford a car to travel to a better job. Housing assistance makes sense. It is good public policy.

That is the message of this year’s Out of Reach report. With this important publication, the National Low Income Housing Coalition provides independent confirmation of the findings of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that affordable rental housing remains out of reach for millions of Americans. With this report, the Coalition continues its extraordinary record of educating the public about the need to redouble our efforts to solve this crisis.

Ultimately this is not about bricks and mortar, but about the hopes and dreams of every American family. It’s not about housing units, but about building strong communities. However compelling the numbers, this is not about statistics. It’s about justice for all – social, racial and economic justice. Now is the time to extend justice to every community in America with the promise of decent, safe and affordable housing for all.

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