HUD also provides resources to local public
housing authorities, such as the
Indianapolis Housing Authority, through
programs that provide project-based and
tenant-based assistance. These resources
may be used to support the development
or redevelopment of individual housing
projects, or they may be used by individual
families to make up the difference between
30 percent of their income and a HUDestablished fair market rent with
participating landlords.
housing for low-income households
through the Low Income Housing Tax
Credit program. This program allows
investors in low-income housing projects to
offset their income tax burden through a
qualified investment in the development of
low-income housing; the owner/investor
agrees to keep rents affordable for a thirtyyear period, thereby creating and
preserving affordable housing. The Indiana
Housing and Community Development
Authority administers this program
throughout the State of Indiana.
The US Treasury also serves as a major
source of federal subsidy to support the
development of high-quality affordable
Drivers of Affordable Housing
Supply: Housing affordability is greatly
shaped by larger economic forces in a
metropolitan area. Put simply, there’s a
reason New York, San Francisco, and
Boston are incredibly expensive places to
live, whereas places like Flint (MI),
Youngstown (OH), and Scranton (PA) have
much lower housing costs. The broader
economy attracts capital (human and
monetary) from outside the region and
increases demand for quality housing,
which pushes up prices.
A tight housing market is often a sign of a
robust economy. Over the long term it may
be better to be house-poor in an
economically strong region than slightly
more house-secure in a weak region
because there is more opportunity to
progress in the stronger economic region;
New York, San Francisco,
and Boston are incredibly
expensive places to live
because their economies
attract human and financial
capital from outside the
regi