Quality of Life, Transportation Costs, and Federal Housing Assistance: Leveling the Playing Field

• Published in: Housing policy debate 2016-09, Vol.26 (4-5), p.646-669
• Main Authors: Bieri, David S., Dawkins, Casey J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Affordability; Cost of living; Federal aid to housing; Housing subsidies; location; low-income housing; Metropolitan areas; Quality of life; Studies; Vouchers
• ISSN: 1051-1482; 2152-050X
• DOI: 10.1080/10511482.2016.1188844

Federal housing subsidies are allocated without regard to spatial differences in the cost of living or quality of life. In this article, we calculate housing subsidy payments for participants in the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program and demonstrate that these subsidies are significantly related to metropolitan quality-of-life differentials. We then estimate amenity-adjusted subsidies and compare these estimates with data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Location Affordability Portal. Our analysis yields three insights regarding the relationship between federal housing assistance payments (HAP), metropolitan quality-of-life differentials, and transportation cost burdens. First, HCV HAP show a strong inverse correlation with household transportation expenditures, and this is particularly pronounced for low-income households. Thus, HAP do not address location affordability because those living in high-transportation cost metropolitan areas receive the lowest housing subsidies. Second, we present evidence that HAP are positively related to metropolitan quality-of-life differentials. This suggests that high-amenity metropolitan areas also tend to be the most affordable from a transportation cost perspective. Third, our proposed amenity-adjusted HAP strongly reduce the inverse relationship between HAP and transportation cost burdens.