Overview of Federal Housing Assistance Programs and Policy

Summary

The federal government has been involved in providing housing assistance to lower-income households since the 1930s. In the beginning, the federal government was involved in supporting the mortgage market (through establishment of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and the government-sponsored enterprises) and in promoting construction of low-rent public housing for lower-income families through local public housing authorities (PHAs). Over time, the role of the federal government has shifted away from providing construction-based subsidies to providing rental subsidies; private developers and property owners now play a larger role; and more federal funding has been provided to states and localities.

Today's federal housing assistance programs fall into three main categories: rental housing assistance, assistance to state and local governments, and assistance for homeowners. Most of these programs are administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Current housing assistance programs include Section 8 vouchers and project-based rental assistance, public housing, housing for the elderly (Section 202), housing for persons with disabilities (Section 811), rural rental assistance (the United States Department of Agriculture's Section 521 program), Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), HOME Investment Partnerships Block Grants, Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), homeless assistance programs, FHA and Veterans' Administration mortgage insurance, and the mortgage interest deduction in the tax code.

Most of the federal housing assistance programs are aimed at making housing affordable for low-income families. Housing affordability—housing that costs no more than 30% of family income—is considered the largest housing problem today. Rental assistance programs, which are the largest source of direct housing assistance for low-income families, all allow families to pay affordable, income-based rents; however, different forms of assistance target different types of households, including the elderly, persons with disabilities, and families with children. Several trends in federal housing policy have emerged in recent decades. As the focus of federal housing assistance has shifted away from construction-based subsidies to rental assistance, block grants, and LIHTC, state and local governments have had greater access to federal resources to fund local housing and community development priorities. This shift in federal funding has also led affordable housing developers to pursue mixed financing: the use of multiple streams of federal funding, state, and local funding, or private financing. In the past, lagging homeownership rates among low-income and minority households have prompted several Presidents to promote homeownership-based housing policies. However, given the severe downturn in U.S. housing markets in recent years and the resulting high foreclosure rate, it is unclear to what degree federal policy will continue to focus on increasing access to homeownership.

Introduction

The federal government has played a role in subsidizing housing construction and providing homeownership and rental assistance for lower-income households since the 1930s. Today, Congress funds a number of programs to help meet the housing needs of poor and vulnerable populations. The programs are primarily administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), with some assistance provided to rural communities through the Department of Agriculture and some tax benefits administered through the Department of the Treasury. The modern housing assistance programs include both relatively flexible grants to state and local governments to serve homeless people, build affordable housing, provide assistance to first-time homebuyers, and promote community development and more structured, direct assistance programs that provide low-cost apartments and rental vouchers to poor families, administered through local public, quasi-public, and private intermediaries. The federal government also makes tax credits available to states to distribute to developers of low-cost housing and provides insurance to lenders that make mortgages to eligible homebuyers. The federal government's largest housing program, however, is arguably the mortgage interest deduction, which is not targeted to lower-income households, but is available to all homeowners who pay mortgage interest and itemize their deductions.

This report begins with an overview of the history and evolution of federal housing assistance policy, followed by a description of today's major federal housing assistance programs, and concludes with a discussion of issues and trends in federal housing assistance policy. It is an expanded version of the Federal Housing Assistance section originally prepared for the 2008 edition of the Committee on Ways and Means publication, "Background Material and Data on the Programs within the Jurisdiction of the Committee on Ways and Means" (informally known as the Green Book). This report does not track current legislation.

The federal government's first major housing policy was formulated in response to trouble in the mortgage market resulting from the Great Depression. Until the early 1930s, most mortgages were written for terms of three to five years and required borrowers to make payments only on an annual basis. At the end of the three- or five-year terms, the remaining loan balance had to be repaid or the mortgage had to be renegotiated. Another feature of the mortgage market was that lenders would only lend 40% to 50% of the value of the property, so borrowers had to have the cash to complete the transaction or find someone willing to finance the balance (or part of the balance) in a second mortgage. During the Great Depression, however, lenders were unable or unwilling to refinance many of the loans that became due. When borrowers could not pay the loan balances, lenders foreclosed on the loans and took possession of the properties.

It was against this background that the Housing Act of 1934 (P.L. 73-479) was enacted. The broad objectives of the act were to (1) encourage lenders to invest in housing construction, and (2) to stimulate employment in the building industry. The act created the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). FHA insured lenders against losses on home modernization and home improvement loans, created the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund to fund the operation of the newly-created mortgage insurance programs, and established national mortgage associations to buy and sell mortgages.

The creation of FHA also institutionalized a revolutionary idea: 20-year mortgages on which a loan would be completely repaid at the end of its term. If borrowers defaulted, FHA insured that the lender would be fully repaid. Eventually, lenders began to make long-term mortgages without FHA insurance as long as borrowers made significant down payments. Over time, 25- and 30-year mortgages have become standard mortgage products.

As in the case of the mortgage finance market, the federal government initially became involved in the provision of rental housing assistance in response to the Great Depression. In the early 1930s, a housing division was added to President Franklin D. Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration (WPA) as a part of the effort to create jobs and spur economic growth.¹ The Housing Division acquired land and built multifamily housing projects for occupancy by lower-income families across the country. However, the Housing Division's activities proved controversial with local government officials who thought that they were not consulted in the process.

Against this backdrop, the U.S. Housing Act of 1937 (P.L. 75-412) was enacted. It replaced the WPA's Housing Division and its projects by establishing a new, federal United States Housing Agency (a precursor agency to today's Department of Housing and Urban Development) and a new Low-Rent Public Housing program. The new program required partnerships between the federal government, states, and localities. States that wished to receive assistance in building low-rent public housing were required to pass enabling legislation creating new, quasi-governmental, local public housing authorities (PHAs). These PHAs could then apply to the federal government for funding to aid in the construction and maintenance of low-rent housing developments targeted to low-income families. The act declared that it was the policy of the United States:

to promote the general welfare of the nation by employing its funds and credit, as provided in this Act, to assist the several states and their political subdivisions to alleviate present and recurring unemployment and to remedy the unsafe and unsanitary housing conditions and the acute shortage of decent, safe, and sanitary dwellings for families of low-income, in rural or urban communities, that are injurious to the health, safety, and morals of the citizens of the nation.

Housing was a major issue in the presidential and congressional races during 1948. President Harry S. Truman's pledge to address the postwar housing shortage and the problem of urban slums played a key role in his margin of victory.² In his State of the Union Address in 1949 unveiling the "Fair Deal," President Truman observed that "Five million families are still living in slums and firetraps. Three million families share their homes with others."³

He further stated

The housing shortage continues to be acute. As an immediate step, the Congress should enact the provisions for low-rent public housing, slum clearance, farm housing, and housing research which I have repeatedly recommended. The number of low-rent public housing units provided for in the legislation should be increased to 1 million units in the next 7 years. Even this number of units will not begin to meet our need for new housing.

The Housing Act of 1949 (P.L. 81-171) declared the goal of "a decent home and a suitable living environment for every American family." The act: (1) established a federal urban redevelopment and slum clearance program, authorizing federal loans of $1 billion over a five-year period to help local redevelopment agencies acquire slum properties and assemble sites for redevelopment; (2) reactivated the public housing program for low-income families (which had been on hold during World War II), authorizing subsidies to local housing authorities sufficient to build 810,000 units over six years; (3) expanded the FHA's mortgage insurance program to promote home building and homeownership; (4) created within the U.S. Department of Agriculture a program of financial assistance and subsidies to improve housing conditions on farms and in rural areas; and (5) authorized federal grants for research, primarily to improve the productivity of the housing industry.

Through the 1950s, the federal government's role in housing assistance focused largely on public housing, which served a mostly poor population. Congress recognized that a gap existed in the market—few options existed for moderate income families whose incomes were too high to qualify for public housing, but too low to afford adequate market rate housing.⁴ Proposals in Congress had been made to address the shortage of housing for moderate income households during the 1950s; however, no legislation had been enacted, in part due to the cost to the government of creating and funding a new program.⁵ In order to avoid creating another large housing program with high expenditures, while at the same time finding a way to serve this segment of the population, Congress approved legislation at the end of the 1950s and throughout the 1960s that engaged the private sector in the development of affordable housing.

The Housing Act of 1959 (P.L. 86-372) was the first significant instance where government incentives were used to persuade private developers to build housing that would be affordable to low- and moderate-income households. As part of P.L. 86-372, Congress created the Section 202 Housing for the Elderly program. Through the Section 202 program, the federal government extended low-interest loans to private non-profit organizations for the development of affordable housing for moderate-income residents age 62 and older. The low interest rates were meant to ensure that units would be affordable, with non-profit developers able to charge lower rents and still have adequate revenue to pay back the government loans.

The Housing Act of 1961 (P.L. 87-70) further expanded the role of the private sector in providing housing to low- and moderate-income households. The act created the Section 221(d)(3) Below Market Interest Rate (BMIR) housing program, which both insured mortgages to private developers of multifamily housing and provided loans at low interest rates. The BMIR program expanded the pool of eligible borrowers to private for-profit developers and government entities, as well as non-profit developers. Eligible developers included cooperatives, limited dividend corporations, and state or local government agencies. Like the Section 202 program, the low interest rates in the BMIR program were meant to ensure that building owners could offer affordable rents to tenants.

In 1965, the Housing and Urban Development Act (P.L. 89-117) added rental assistance to the list of incentives for private multifamily housing developers that participated in the Section 221(d)(3) BMIR program. P.L. 89-117 created the Rent Supplement program, which capped the rents charged to participating tenants at 20% of their incomes and paid building owners the difference between 20% of a tenant's income and fair market rent.

The Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965 also created the Section 23 leased housing program, the first program to provide rent subsidies for use in existing private rental market units. The same PHAs that administered the public housing program were authorized to enter into contracts with landlords in the private market. These contracts authorized payments to landlords who rented units to low-income tenants. Tenants paid one quarter of their income toward rent in these private units, and the federal subsidies made up the difference between the tenant payments and rent for the units.

In 1968, the Housing and Urban Development Act (P.L. 90-448) created the Section 236 and Section 235 programs. In the Section 236 program, the government subsidized private developers' mortgage interest payments so that they would not pay more than 1% toward interest. Like the low interest rate loans provided through the Section 221(d)(3) BMIR program, the Section 236 interest subsidies were meant to ensure that units would be affordable to low- and moderate-income tenants, although some units also received rent subsidies (referred to as Rental Assistance Payments (RAP)) to make them affordable to the lowest-income tenants. The Section 235 program instituted similar mortgage interest reduction payments for individual homeowners rather than multifamily housing developers.

Under the public housing program, tenants generally paid rent in an amount equal to the costs of operating the assisted housing in which they lived. Over time, as operating costs rose, there was a concern that the below-market rents being charged to families were too high to be affordable to the poorest families. The Brooke Amendment, which was included as part of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1969 (P.L. 91-152), limited tenant contributions toward rent in all rent assisted units (including public housing and all project-based rental assistance units) to an amount equal to 25% of tenant income (this was later raised to 30%). The Brooke Amendment is considered responsible for codifying an income-based rent structure in federal housing programs.

By the end of the 1960s, subsidies to private developers had resulted in the creation of hundreds of thousands of housing units. Approximately 700,000 units of housing had been built through the Section 236 and Section 221(d)(3) programs alone.⁶ The Section 202 program had created more than 45,000 units for elderly households.⁷ The Section 235 and Section 23 leased-housing programs provided ownership and rental subsidies for thousands more. Through 1972, the Section 235 program subsidized nearly 400,000 homeowners,⁸ while the Section 23 leased-housing program provided rent subsidies for more than 38,000 private market rental units.⁹ Despite the growth in the role of private developers, public housing was still the largest housing subsidy program, with roughly a million units built and subsidized by the early 1970s.¹⁰

By the early 1970s, concern was growing about the cost, efficacy, and equity of the construction-based housing subsidy programs, such as the Section 236 and public housing programs. Then-President Richard M. Nixon criticized the existing programs as not equitably serving families in the same circumstances, providing poor quality housing, being too costly, and placing some families in homes they could not afford.¹¹ Out of these concerns, President Nixon declared a moratorium on all new activity under the major housing subsidy programs—except for the Section 23 leased-housing program—beginning in January 1973. Assisted housing activity slowly restarted in response to lawsuits and new legislation.

The Housing Act of 1974 (P.L. 93-383) was the first omnibus housing legislation since 1968 and the first such legislation following the Nixon moratorium. The act created a new low-income rental assistance program, referred to as Section 8. Although the 1960s had seen rental assistance programs like Rent Supplement and Section 23, the scale of the Section 8 program made it the first comprehensive rental assistance program. The Section 8 program combined features of the Section 236 program, which was popular with advocates of construction-based subsidies, and the Section 23 leased housing program, which used the existing housing stock and was popular with the Nixon Administration. Through Section 8, the federal government provided private property owners monthly assistance payments for new or substantially rehabilitated rental units. In exchange for monthly rental payments, property owners would agree to rent to eligible low-income families (defined as families with incomes at or below 80% of local area median income) who would pay an income-based rent. It also provided PHAs with the authority to enter into rental assistance contracts for existing, private market units.

Under the Section 8 project-based rental assistance program, HUD entered into contracts with private property owners under which owners agreed to rent their housing units to eligible low-income tenants for an income-based rent, and HUD agreed to pay the difference between tenants' contributions and a rent set by HUD. Families are eligible to live in project-based Section 8 units if they are low-income (having income at or below 80% of the area median income), but 40% of units made available each year must be reserved for extremely low-income families (those with income at or below 30% of the area median income).

Low-rent public housing developments are owned and operated by local public housing authorities (PHAs) and subsidized and regulated by the federal government. (The program is codified at 42 U.S.C. §1437.) Generally, families are eligible to live in public housing if they are low-income (those with income at or below 80% of area median income), but 40% of public housing units that become available in a year must be given to extremely low-income families (those with income at or below 30% of area median income). As in the Section 8 voucher program, families living in public housing pay 30% of their adjusted income toward rent.

PHAs receive several streams of funding from HUD to help make up the difference between what tenants pay in rent and what it costs to maintain public housing. PHAs receive operating funds and capital funds through a formula allocation process; operating funds are used for management, administration, and the day-to-day costs of running a housing development and capital funds are used for modernization needs (such as replacing a roof or heating and cooling system, or reconfiguring units). PHAs can also apply for competitive HOPE VI—now Choice Neighborhoods—revitalization grants, which are used to demolish and rebuild, or substantially rehabilitate, severely distressed public housing, replacing it with mixed-income housing.

Fiscal Year

Total Section 8

2003

17,116

2004

19,257

2005

14,766

5,298

20,064

2006

5,037

20,455

2007

15,920

5,976

21,896

2008

6,382

22,085

2009

2010

18,184

8,558

26,741

2011

18,371

9,257

27,628

2012

9,340

27,604

2013

17,964

8,851

26,815

Source: HUD Congressional Budget Justifications from FY2005 through FY2015. Enacted funding figures are taken from subsequent years' justifications. FY2013 funding levels reflect sequestration.

Note: Figures are not adjusted for rescissions of unobligated budget authority. Figures shown represent budget authority available in the fiscal year, not budget authority provided (which accounts for differences in advance appropriations from year to year).

($ in millions)

Fiscal Year

Capital Fund

HOPE VI/Choice Neighborhoods

2003

3,577

2,712

570

6,859

2004

3,579

2,696

149

6,424

2005

2,438

2,579

143

5,160

2006

3,564

2,439

99

6,102

2007

3,864

2,439

99

6,402

2008

4,200

2,439

100

6,739

2009

4,455

120

2010

4,775

2,500

200

7,475

2011

4,617

2,040

100

6,757

2012

3,962

1,875

120

5,957

2013

4,054

1,777

114

5,945

Source: HUD Congressional Budget Justifications from FY2005 through FY2015. Enacted funding figures are taken from subsequent years' justifications. FY2013 funding levels reflect sequestration.

Note: An accounting change enacted by Congress led to a one-time savings in the public housing operating fund in FY2005.

Through the Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly program, HUD provides funds to nonprofit organizations which in turn build rental properties for low-income elderly households (those where one or more persons are age 62 or older). The program was created as part of the Housing Act of 1959 (P.L. 86-372). (The program is codified at 12 U.S.C. §1701q.)

($ in millions)

Fiscal Year

Section 811

2003

678

249

2004

698

249

2005

648

238

2006

635

231

2007

639

236

2008

629

237

2009

625

250

2010

668

300

2011

306

2012

283

2013

265

The amounts appropriated for Section 202 include funds for new capital grants, new project rental assistance, and renewals of or amendments to project rental assistance contracts. These figures do not include funds for Service Coordinators or the Assisted Living Conversion Program.

The Section 236 program was a HUD initiative to encourage private developers to create housing affordable to low- and moderate-income households. The program, created as part of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 (P.L. 90-448) was active in promoting new development from approximately 1969 to 1973. (The program is codified at 12 U.S.C. §1715z-1.) The Section 236 program provided mortgage insurance to housing developers for the construction and rehabilitation of rental housing and continues to provide mortgage subsidies to building owners through a mechanism called Interest Reduction Payments (IRPs). IRPs are subsidies to owners that ensure that the owners will only pay 1% interest on their mortgages. Given the reduced financing costs, owners can charge below-market rents for Section 236 units. Many units also receive rental assistance payments through the Section 8 project-based rental assistance program, Rent Supplement program, or the Rental Assistance Payments (RAP) program, making the units affordable to very low-income and extremely low-income families.

The Section 221(d)(3) Below Market Interest Rate (BMIR) program was another HUD program that encouraged private developers to create affordable housing by offering FHA-insured loans with interest rates of 3%. The program was enacted as part of the Housing Act of 1961 (P.L. 87-70) and actively insured new loans until 1968, when the Section 236 program replaced it as a vehicle for affordable housing development. (The Section 221(d)(3) program is codified at 12 U.S.C. §1715l.) Like Section 236, units created under this program are offered for below-market rents and units may also receive rental assistance.

Title V of the Housing Act of 1949 authorized the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to make loans to farmers to enable them to construct, improve, repair, or replace dwellings and other farm buildings to provide decent, safe, and sanitary living conditions for themselves, their tenants, lessees, sharecroppers, and laborers. USDA was authorized to make grants, or combinations of loans and grants to those farmers who could not qualify to repay the full amount of a loan, but who needed the funds to make their dwellings sanitary or to remove health hazards to the occupants or the community. Although the act was initially targeted to farmers, over time the act has been amended to enable USDA to make housing loans and grants to rural residents in general.

The USDA housing programs are generally referred to by the section number under which they are authorized in the Housing Act of 1949, as amended. Under the Section 515 program, the Rural Housing Service of the USDA is authorized to make direct loans for the construction of rural rental and cooperative housing. (The Section 515 program is codified at 42 U.S.C. §1485.) The loans are made at a 1% interest rate and are repayable in 50 years. Except for public agencies, all borrowers must demonstrate that financial assistance from other sources is not enough to enable the borrower to provide the housing at terms that are affordable to the target population. USDA also provides guarantees on loans made by private lenders to developers of affordable rural rental housing for low- and moderate-income households under the Section 538 program. (The Section 538 program is codified at 42 U.S.C. §1490p-2.)

Under the Section 521 program, rental assistance payments, which are made directly to owners of rental properties, make up the difference between the tenants' rent payments and the USDA-approved rent for the Section 515 units. (The Section 521 program is codified at 42 U.S.C. §1490a.) Owners must agree to operate the property on a limited profit or nonprofit basis. For more information about rural housing assistance programs, see CRS Report RL31837, An Overview of USDA Rural Development Programs, by [author name scrubbed].

($ in millions)

Fiscal Year

2003

724

2004

581

2005

587

2006

647

2007

616

2008

479

2009

903

2010

980

2011

954

2012

905

2013

837

($ in millions)

Fiscal Year

CDBG Formula Grants^a

Set-Asides

2003

4,340

565

4,905

2004

4,331

603

4,934

2005

4,117

585

4,702

2006

3,711

467

4,178

2007

3,711

61

3,772

2008

273

3,866

2009

258

4,900

2010

500

4,450

2011

3,303

198

3,501

2012

2,948

60

3,008

2013

3,078

57

3,135

Source: HUD Congressional Budget Justifications from FY2005 through FY2015. Enacted funding figures are taken from subsequent years' justifications. FY2013 funding levels reflect sequestration.

Note: The CDBG program is funded in an account called the Community Development Fund. That account also funds set-asides including funding for Economic Development Initiatives and Neighborhood Initiatives. This table excludes emergency funding provided to CDBG in response to disasters.

The HOME Investment Partnerships Program is a housing block grant program administered by HUD and designed to expand the supply of decent, safe, sanitary, and affordable housing. (The program is codified at 42 U.S.C. §§12741 et seq.) HOME funds are allocated via formula: 60% of funds are awarded to "participating jurisdictions" (localities which have populations above a certain threshold) and 40% are awarded to states to use in areas not served by participating jurisdictions. HOME grantees must match 25% of their HOME grants (with some exceptions) and submit a plan to HUD detailing their community housing needs and priorities.

HOME funds can be used for four main purposes: rehabilitation of owner-occupied housing, homebuyer assistance, rental housing construction and rehabilitation, and the provision of tenant-based rental assistance. All HOME funds must be used to benefit low-income families (those with incomes at or below 80% of the area median income), and at least 90% of funds used for rental housing activities or tenant-based rental assistance must be used to benefit families with incomes at or below 60% of area median income. For more information about HOME, see CRS Report R40118, An Overview of the HOME Investment Partnerships Program, by [author name scrubbed].

($ in millions)

Fiscal Year

HOME Formula Grants

Set-Asides

HOME Account Total

2003

1,850

137

1,987

2004

1,855

150

2,006

2005

1,785

115

1,900

2006

1,677

81

1,757

2007

1,677

81

1,757

2008

1,625

79

1,704

2009

1,805

20

2010

1,803

22

1,825

2011

1,587

19

1,607

2012

998

2

1,000

2013

946

2

948

Source: HUD Congressional Budget Justifications from FY2005 through FY2015. Enacted funding figures are taken from subsequent years' justifications. FY2013 funding levels reflect sequestration.

Note: In addition to funding HOME block grants, the HOME account also funds certain set-asides that have varied over the years. Such set-asides have included HOME funding for insular areas as well as programs such as the American Dream Downpayment Initiative (ADDI) and the Housing Counseling Assistance Program, among other things. ADDI, which provided funding for down payment and closing cost assistance for eligible first time homebuyers, was funded through the HOME account from FY2003-FY2008; Congress has not provided funding for ADDI in subsequent fiscal years. The Housing Counseling Assistance Program was funded through a set-aside in the HOME account until FY2009. Since that time, housing counseling has been funded in its own account rather than as a set-aside within the HOME account.

ESG program funds may be used by grantees in two categories: (1) emergency shelter and related services and (2) homelessness prevention and rapid rehousing. The statute limits use of funds in the first category to the greater of 60% of a state or local government's ESG allocation or the amount the recipient spent for these purposes in the year prior to the effective date of the HEARTH Act. CoC program funds may be used for transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, rapid rehousing, supportive services, and Homeless Management Information Systems. Grantees under the RHS program may use funds to assist people who are experiencing homelessness in many of the same ways as the CoC program. These include transitional housing, permanent housing, rapid rehousing, data collection, and a range of supportive services. Funds may also be used for homelessness prevention activities, relocation assistance, short-term emergency housing, and home repairs that are necessary to make housing habitable.

For more information about the Homeless Assistance Grants, see CRS Report RL33764, The HUD Homeless Assistance Grants: Programs Authorized by the HEARTH Act, by [author name scrubbed].

($ in millions)

($ in millions)

Fiscal Year

NAHASDA

2003

645

2004

650

2005

622

2006

624

2007

624

2008

624

2009

2010

700

2011

649

2012

650

2013

616

Source: HUD Congressional Budget Justifications from FY2005 through FY2015. Enacted funding figures are taken from subsequent years' justifications. FY2013 funding levels reflect sequestration.

Note: Figures show total funding for the Native American Housing Block Grants account. In addition to funding the block grants, this account also includes funding for the Title VI Loan Guarantee Program, funding for training and technical assistance, and funding for a national organization representing Native American housing interests (traditionally the National American Indian Housing Council).

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) was established by the National Housing Act of 1934 (P.L. 73-479). Today an agency within HUD, FHA insures private lenders against losses on certain home mortgages. Since lenders are insured against loss if borrowers default, they are willing to make loans to borrowers who might not otherwise be served by the private market, particularly those with low down payments or little credit history. FHA-insured borrowers pay insurance premiums to FHA and are subject to limits on the size of loan that they can obtain.

The FHA administers a variety of mortgage insurance products, including insurance for home purchase and home improvement loans, reverse mortgages to allow the elderly to remain in their homes, and loans for the purchase, repair, or construction of apartments, hospitals, and nursing homes. The programs are administered through two program accounts—the Mutual Mortgage Insurance/Cooperative Management Housing Insurance fund account (MMI Fund) and the General Insurance/Special Risk Insurance fund account (GI/SRI Fund). The MMI Fund provides insurance for single-family mortgages. The GI/SRI fund provides insurance for mortgages on multifamily buildings, hospitals and nursing homes, and for an assortment of special purpose loans such as manufactured housing loans and home improvement loans.

Fiscal Year

2002

765

11

2003

630

8

2004

457

7

2005

323

4

2006

295

4

2007

317

6

2008

845

24

2009

1,088

33

2010

944

32

2011

760

27

2012

738

29

The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 (P.L. 78-346) established the home loan guaranty program, which is administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The VA loan guaranty came about as an alternative to a cash bonus for veterans returning from World War II, considered less expensive than a bonus, but still a way to provide benefits to veterans.

The loan guaranty program assists veterans by insuring mortgages made by private lenders, and is available for the purchase or construction of homes as well as to refinance existing loans. The loan guaranty has expanded over the years so that it is available to (1) all veterans who fulfill specific duration of service requirements or who were released from active duty due to service-connected disabilities, (2) members of the reserves who completed at least six years of service, and (3) spouses of veterans who died in action, died of service-connected disabilities, or who died while receiving (or while being entitled to receive) benefits for certain service-connected disabilities. Under the loan guaranty, the VA agrees to reimburse lenders for a portion of losses if borrowers default. Unlike insurance provided through the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) insurance program, the VA does not insure 100% of the loan, and instead the percentage of the loan that is guaranteed is based on the principal balance of the loan.

Fiscal Year

VA-Insured Purchase Mortgages as a % of All Home Purchase Mortgages

2002

177

3

2003

149

2

2004

152

2

2005

119

2

2006

123

2

2007

118

2

2008

142

4

2009

181

5

2010

193

7

2011

187

7

2012

202

8

Through the Section 502 Rural Housing Loan program, USDA is authorized to make both direct loans and to guarantee private loans to very low- to moderate-income rural residents for the purchase or repair of new or existing single-family homes. (The program is codified at 42 U.S.C. §1472.) The direct loans have a 33-year term and interest rates may be as low as 1%. Borrowers in rural areas with incomes at or below 80% of area median income qualify for the direct loans. The guaranteed loans have 30-year terms, and borrowers in rural areas with incomes at or below 115% of the area median qualify. Priority for both direct and guaranteed loans is given to first-time homebuyers, and USDA may require that borrowers complete a homeownership counseling program.

Through the Section 504 program, the USDA makes loans and grants to very low-income homeowners (those with incomes at or below 50% of area median income) for home repairs or improvements, or to remove health and safety hazards. (The program is codified at 42 U.S.C. §1474.) The Section 504 grants may be available to homeowners who are age 62 or older. To qualify for the grants, the elderly homeowners must lack the ability to repay the full cost of the repairs. Depending on the cost of the repairs and the income of the elderly homeowner, the owner may be eligible either for a grant that will cover the full cost of the repairs, or for some combination of loan and grant. For more information about rural housing programs, see CRS Report RL31837, An Overview of USDA Rural Development Programs, by [author name scrubbed].

Fiscal Year

2002

14

28

2003

13

32

2004

15

34

2005

12

31

2006

12

30

2007

11

34

2008

10

59

2009

12

131

2010

17

133

2011

9

121

2012

8

145

Notes: FY2009 and FY2010 figures include loans funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

The Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLB; the Banks) were created in 1932 by the Federal Home Loan Bank Act (P.L. 72-304) to serve as lenders to savings and loan associations, which at the time made the majority of home mortgage loans. The Banks were established to ensure the liquidity of these lenders, and today lend money to commercial banks, credit unions, and insurance companies in addition to savings and loans. The FHLB System includes twelve regional wholesale Banks and an Office of Finance. Each Bank is a separate legal entity, cooperatively owned by its member financial institutions, and has its own management, employees, and board of directors. Each Bank is assigned a distinct geographic area.

The FHLB system is a government-sponsored enterprise (GSE). As a GSE, the Banks receive certain privileges to assist them in carrying out their mission, such as an exemption from certain taxes. Each of the Federal Home Loan Banks is required to annually contribute 10% of its net income toward an Affordable Housing Program (AHP).²³ Through the AHP, the Banks provide grants and subsidized loans for rental and owner-occupied housing for very low- and low-income households. Each FHLB may set aside up to the greater of 35% of its AHP funds or $4.5 million per year to help low- and moderate-income households purchase homes by providing grants for down payment or closing cost assistance or other costs related to buying or rehabilitating a home. At least one-third of the amount set aside for homeownership assistance must be used for first-time homebuyers, and the maximum per-household grant amount may not exceed $15,000.²⁴

Each of the Banks also operates a Community Investment Program (CIP). Through the CIP, the Banks offer advances to member financial institutions at discounted interest rates to fund rental and owner-occupied housing for households at or below 115% of area median income as well as other community development activities. (The Affordable Housing Program and Community Investment Program are codified at 12 U.S.C. §1430. Regulations are at 12 C.F.R. Part 1291 and 12 C.F.R. Part 952, respectively.)

The Section 235 program, enacted as part of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 (P.L. 90-448), helped to subsidize the home purchases of individual borrowers. Through the program, FHA provided a monthly subsidy payment to lenders in order to reduce the interest liability of loans made to eligible borrowers. As originally enacted and administered, homebuyers were required to pay at least 20% of their income toward debt service on their mortgages, and FHA paid the lenders the lesser of (1) the balance of the monthly payment due after the borrowers paid 20% of their income or (2) the difference between the required payments at the FHA interest rate and the payments that would be due on a loan with a 1% interest rate. As a result, the subsidy to homeowners varied depending upon their income, the amount of the mortgage, and the market interest rate.

The Section 235 program had a two-tiered eligibility component. At least 80% of program funds were made available for homebuyers with incomes that did not exceed 135% of the maximum income for admission to public housing. Applicants in this group could purchase homes with down payments as low as $200. The remaining 20% of program funds were available for a higher income group. Applicants in this group had to make down payments of at least 3% of the sales price. New commitments under the Section 235 program were halted by the 1973 Nixon moratorium; a revised version of the program was reactivated in 1976. The Section 235 program was terminated as of October 1, 1989 by the Housing and Community Development Act of 1987 (P.L. 100-242); however, according to the most recent publicly available HUD data, several thousand families continue to be assisted by the program.²⁵

Homeownership promotion has generally taken two forms: government assistance in the financing of home purchases, and tax preferences favoring homeowners. One of the tax incentives that promote homeownership is the mortgage interest deduction. The mortgage interest deduction allows homeowners to deduct any interest paid on their mortgage from their taxable income, thus reducing their tax liability. The deduction benefits those households that own homes, that have a mortgage on which they pay interest, that have federal income tax liability, and for whom itemized deductions exceed the standard deduction (approximately 75% of taxpayers take the standard deduction). It is not targeted to lower-income households.

Although the mortgage interest deduction was not initially created to promote homeownership,²⁶ today, the mortgage interest deduction could be considered the federal government's largest housing program. In FY2013, the Joint Committee on Taxation estimated that the mortgage interest deduction would result in a $69.7 billion tax expenditure.²⁷ For more information about the mortgage interest deduction, see CRS Report R41596, The Mortgage Interest and Property Tax Deductions: Analysis and Options, by [author name scrubbed].

When the federal housing assistance programs began in the 1930s, the nation was considered to be ill-housed. The Housing Act of 1937 identified an "acute shortage of decent, safe, and sanitary dwellings." Thanks in part to stricter building codes and standards, most housing in the United States today is decent, safe, and sanitary. Although some units are still considered substandard, today the greatest perceived housing problem is affordability. Housing is considered "affordable" if it costs no more than 30% of a household's income. Households that pay half or more of their income toward their housing costs are considered severely cost burdened; households that pay between 30% and 50% of their income toward their housing costs are considered moderately cost burdened. According to data from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, 21.7 million households were moderately cost burdened and 20.6 million households were severely cost burdened in 2011.²⁸

Public policy is generally most concerned with the housing affordability problems of the lowest-income families, because high housing costs may prevent these families from meeting their other basic needs. The American Community Survey data show that in 2011, among households with income below $15,000 per year, 68.7% were severely cost burdened (compared to 62.6% in 2001), and for households with income between $15,000 and $29,999 per year, 30.9% were severely cost burdened (compared to 23.1% in 2001).²⁹

HUD is directed to report to Congress periodically on the incidence of "worst case" housing needs. Worst case housing needs are defined as occurring when unassisted renters with very low incomes (at or below 50% of area median income) pay more than half of their income for housing costs or live in severely substandard housing. In its 2011 report to Congress on worst case housing needs, HUD found that nearly 8.5 million households (or 7.4% of all households) had worst case housing needs, increasing by 19% compared to 2009 (when 7.1 million households had worst case housing needs, or 6.0% of all households) and by 43% compared to 2007 (when 5.9 million households had worst case housing needs, or 5.3% of all households).³⁰ Prior to 2005, the percentage of households having worst case housing needs had remained relatively steady—roughly 5% of all households—since HUD began reporting on worst case housing needs in 1991. The vast majority of households with worst case housing needs in 2011 (93%) were severely cost burdened, but lived in standard housing; only about 3% of households had worst case housing needs solely because they lived in substandard housing (another 4% experienced both conditions).

Public housing, Section 8 vouchers, and the Section 8 project-based rental assistance programs combined serve roughly 4 million households and can be considered the primary housing assistance programs for low-income families. These three forms of assistance are similar in many ways. They all target assistance to extremely low-income families, require families to pay 30% of their incomes toward rent, and generally have long waiting lists for assistance. However, the three vary in terms of their evolution, the structure of their benefit (a portable voucher versus a housing unit), and their administration (PHA versus private owner).

Public Housing

Household Characteristics

Elderly Head of Household or Spouse

21%

32%

46%

Non-elderly Disabled Head of Household or Spouse

28%

20%

17%

All Households with Children

49%

39%

30%

Female Head of Household

81%

74%

73%

Female Head of Household With Children

44%

34%

27%

Race and Ethnicity (Head of Household)

Non-Hispanic White

34%

26%

45%

Non-Hispanic Black

47%

45%

34%

Hispanic

16%

25%

16%

Other

4%

3%

5%

Household Income

$0-$5,000

14%

14%

16%

$5,001-$10,000

30%

32%

32%

$10,001-$15,000

24%

20%

26%

$15,001-$20,000

14%

13%

14%

$20,001-$30,000

12%

11%

9%

$30,001-$90,000

5%

11%

3%

The Section 8 (tenant-based) voucher program serves more single, female-headed households with children than do the public housing program or project-based programs. Based on 2012 HUD data, 44% of voucher households were households with children headed by females, compared to 34% of public housing households and 27% of project-based households. The project-based Section 8 program primarily serves families headed by persons who are elderly or live with disabilities, who account for nearly two-thirds (63%) of all households served in the program. This is not surprising given that owners of project-based housing may designate entire properties for elderly or disabled households. In addition, units of Section 202 housing for the elderly that were developed during the 1970s and 1980s were subsidized with project-based Section 8 rental assistance. Public housing and the Section 8 voucher program each have about half of households (52% and 49%, respectively) where the head or spouse is elderly or a person with a disability.

HUD reports race and ethnicity of the head of household as non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black, Hispanic, and other. In Public Housing and the Section 8 voucher program, non-Hispanic black household heads make up the largest share of households (45% and 47%, respectively). In the project-based Section 8 program, non-Hispanic white household heads are the largest share (45%), with non-Hispanic black household heads making up 34% of the total. Between 16% and 25% of households served across the three programs have heads of household who identify their ethnicity as Hispanic, with Public Housing having the largest share.

The rules governing the three main housing assistance programs require that they serve low-income households, those with incomes at or below 80% of area median income. However, with the targeting required in these programs, many households served have very low- or extremely low-incomes (at or below 50% or 30% of area median income, respectively).³¹ As an example, in 2012 the national median income was $65,000,³² meaning that low-income would be considered at or below $49,200; very low-income, $32,500; and extremely low-income, $19,500. The majority of households served in each of the three programs have incomes at or below $15,000. In Public Housing, the percentage of households with incomes at or below $15,000 is 65%, rising to 68% of households in the Section 8 voucher program, and 73% of households in Project-Based Section 8.

Concern has been raised that perhaps the income-based rent structure in the assisted housing programs acts as a disincentive for households to increase their earnings; for every new dollar a family earns, thirty-cents must go toward rent.³³ There have been some efforts to mitigate this perceived work disincentive, including the adoption of an earned income disregard in the public housing program and an earned income disregard for disabled families in the voucher program. Congress also developed the Family Self Sufficiency (FSS) program in an effort to promote work. Families in the FSS program enter into contracts with their PHAs in which they agree to take steps toward becoming self-sufficient within five years. The PHA, in turn, agrees to deposit any increased rent collected as a result of the family's increased earnings into an escrow account that the family will receive at the end of the five years, or from which they can make interim withdrawals for approved purposes. FSS is voluntary for PHAs to administer and voluntary for families to join.

Beginning in the 1980s, the federal government took on a lesser role in the creation of assisted housing. This occurred in several ways. Congress ceased funding new construction under the Section 8 project-based program, which from its enactment in 1974 had subsidized hundreds of thousands of units of assisted housing. This left very few active programs in which HUD supported the development of physical housing units. Between 1976 and 1982, the federal housing programs produced more than 1 million units of subsidized housing.³⁴ In the following years, however, annual production was around 25,000 new subsidized units.³⁵ Around the time that housing production was declining, Congress created two programs that gave a good deal of control over decisions regarding housing policy and development to state and local governments—these included the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program and the HOME Investment Partnerships program. These programs, particularly the LIHTC, have been used by states and localities to create hundreds of thousands of units of affordable housing.

The federal government's decision to take a lesser role in the development of housing has had several consequences. First, state and local governments have taken on an increased role in providing affordable housing and establishing priorities in their communities.³⁶ Second, due to a reduction in the number of new affordable housing units that are created each year, the need to preserve existing affordable housing units has taken on a new importance. A third consequence is the need for multiple streams of funding other than federal grants in order both to support the creation of new affordable housing units and to preserve existing units. Those three consequences are discussed more fully below.

First, with the advent of both the LIHTC program and the HOME program, states and localities were able to exercise discretion in determining how to prioritize and develop housing using a larger pool of federal funds. Until that point, even though states, through their Housing Finance Agencies, helped finance mortgage loans and affordable rental housing, their role was limited by the amount of funds available.

In the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program, states develop plans in which they may set aside a certain percentage of tax credits for populations such as homeless individuals or persons with disabilities. They may also decide to use tax credits to preserve existing housing as well as to build new housing. Funds that states receive from the HOME program may be used for the construction of new rental housing and rental assistance for low-income households. A potential drawback of these programs is their inability, on their own, to reach the neediest households.³⁷ For example, in a LIHTC development, at least 20% of units must be affordable to households at or below 50% of area median income, or 40% of units must be affordable to households at or below 60% of area median income. Many of the older HUD programs constructed housing that was affordable to households at or below 30% of area median income—those considered extremely low-income. Often these households cannot afford units in LIHTC properties without rental subsidies, such as Section 8 vouchers.³⁸

Another way some states and local governments support affordable housing is outside of the assistance of the federal government, through establishment of their own housing trust funds. These trust funds use dedicated funding sources such as document recording fees or real estate transfer taxes to create a pool of funds for affordable housing. By using a dedicated source of financing, trust funds may not be as subject to the vicissitudes of state budgets as are other means of funding housing development. States and local communities also support affordable housing through inclusionary zoning. Through this method, housing developers are expected to dedicate a percentage of units they build as affordable housing. In exchange, states or local communities give developers incentives that allow them to expand or speed up the pace of development. Some of the incentives include density bonuses or zoning variances that allow developers to build larger facilities than they would be able to under existing zoning regulations, as well as expedited approval of building permits.

A second consequence of the decreased role of the federal government in the production of affordable housing units is the increased pressure to maintain the affordability of existing units. Many HUD subsidized units that were developed in the 1960s and 1970s through programs such as Section 236 and Section 221(d)(3), as well as those units that received Section 8 project-based rental assistance, are no longer available to low-income households. At the time the properties were developed, building owners entered into contracts with HUD in which they agreed to maintain affordability for a certain number of years. The duration of these contracts varied; depending on the federal program, these contracts, or "use restrictions" may last between 15 years (the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program) and 50 years (early Section 202 developments). In recent years, these contracts have begun to expire or, in some cases, property owners have chosen to pay off their mortgages early and end the use restrictions. Contracts for rental assistance, including project-based Section 8 rental assistance, have also begun to expire. When any of these events occur, owners may charge market-rate rents for the units, and the affordable units are lost. The term used to refer to efforts to maintain the affordability of these housing units is "affordable housing preservation." In coming years, more and more property owners will be in a position to opt out of affordability restrictions and thousands of units could be lost.³⁹

Also contributing to the decline in Public Housing units is the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program, enacted as part of the FY2012 Consolidated Appropriations Act (P.L. 112-55). Through RAD, PHAs may convert funds received through the Public Housing operating and capital funds to either project-based Section 8 rental assistance or project-based vouchers. As of the date of this report, the number of eligible Public Housing units eligible to convert through RAD was capped at 60,000.

While not all of these initiatives were established specifically to promote homeownership, many policy makers have come to view these programs and activities as important for helping households access affordable financing to purchase a home. Homeownership has long been perceived to provide a number of economic and social benefits, including an opportunity to build wealth through accumulating home equity and a greater level of neighborhood satisfaction and community involvement.⁴⁷ Given these perceived benefits, an ongoing policy concern has been that some creditworthy households might be unable to achieve these benefits due to difficulties obtaining affordable mortgages. For example, it may be difficult for some households who have the income to sustain a mortgage but do not have funds to make a large down payment to access mortgages on affordable terms.

Since the 1940s, nearly every U.S. President has expressed support for the concept of increased homeownership. For example, there has been the George H.W. Bush Administration's "Blueprint for the American Dream," the Clinton Administration's "National Homeownership Strategy," and the George W. Bush Administration's "Homeownership Initiative." Generally, these proposals involved little new federal funding, but sought to rally the private sector to use existing programs to reach some specified target. The primary focus of the more recent proposals was to increase homeownership among groups who have traditionally been less likely to be homeowners, such as low-income families and minorities.

Given the unprecedented downturn in U.S. housing and mortgage markets in recent years, and the resultant high foreclosure rate, the future of federal policy promoting homeownership is uncertain. High foreclosure rates and steep house price decreases in some areas have led some to question the traditional rationales for promoting homeownership. Nonetheless, others continue to believe that federal policy should continue to support activities that could increase access to homeownership for creditworthy borrowers. Given this policy debate, it remains to be seen whether, and to what extent, the federal government will pursue policies to encourage higher rates of homeownership in the future.

The following tables present data on federal spending (outlays) on selected housing assistance programs as well as data on the number of assisted units, since 1980.

(dollars in millions)

Fiscal Year

Rental Assistance^a

Public Housing^b

Other Housing Assistance^c

Homeless and HOPWA^f

Total Nominal Dollars

Total 2013 Dollars

1980

2,104

2,185

1,042

3,910

9,240

22,564

1981

3,115

2,401

1,139

4,048

10,703

23,809

1982

4,085

2,574

1,208

3,795

11,661

24,273

1983

4,995

3,206

1,107

3,557

12,865

25,648

1984

6,030

2,821

1,037

3,823

13,711

26,404

1985

6,818

3,408

952

3,820

14,998

27,954

1986

7,430

2,882

890

3,329

14,530

26,478

1987

8,125

2,161

868

2,970

2

14,125

25,178

1988

9,133

2,526

851

3,054

37

15,601

26,941

1989

9,918

3,043

774

2,951

70

16,756

27,828

1990

10,581

3,918

778

2,821

82

18,180

29,136

1991

11,400

4,544

712

2,981

120

19,757

30,578

1992

12,307

5,045

752

3,099

145

21,347

32,250

1993

13,289

6,296

752

3,416

172

23,924

35,304

1994

14,576

6,771

762

4,439

189

26,737

38,614

1995

16,948

7,414

750

5,519

270

30,901

43,700

1996

15,779

7,605

719

5,761

453

30,317

42,090

1997

16,393

7,687

738

5,731

718

31,267

42,656

1998^h

16,114

7,534

717

6,360

916

31,640

42,639

1999

15,652

6,560

693

6,748

1,032

30,685

40,834

2000

16,692

7,193

667

7,077

1,100

32,729

42,672

2001

17,494

7,483

659

7,047

1,208

33,892

43,145

2002

19,394

8,193

644

7,349

1,358

36,937

46,279

2003

21,941

7,837

630

7,229

1,376

39,013

47,962

2004

23,453

7,490

620

7,113

1,492

40,168

48,189

2005

24,495

7,426

603

7,225

1,562

41,312

48,052

2006

24,756

7,225

569

7,086

1,655

41,292

46,516

2007

25,674

7,295

559

7,011

1,664

42,202

46,290

2008

25,796

7,534

579

6,828

1,754

42,491

45,664

2009

26,351

7,973

556

6,565

1,801

43,246

45,936

2010

28,848

9,997

519

8,041

2,320

49,725

52,362

2011

29,677

8,973

494

8,463

2,616

50,223

51,874

2012

29,119

7,068

445

7,407

2,288

46,326

47,026

2013

29,004

6,367

391

6,307

2,042

44,111

44,111

Source: Table prepared by CRS based on data from the Department of Housing and Urban Development Annotated Tables for the 2001 Budget, Congressional Budget Justifications, and the Office of Management and Budget's Public Budget Database. Real dollars are obtained using the GDP deflator in the President's FY2015 budget, Table 10.1. The table includes outlays of funds provided as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Units eligible for payment is a measure of the number of housing units under rental assistance contracts with HUD (project-based Section 8, Section 202 and Section 811 units, and rental assistance payment and rent supplement units) as well as the number of Section 8 vouchers. Generally, over the course of a year, each unit will be available for one household, although given turnover, properties are rarely at 100% occupancy and vouchers are rarely 100% utilized. As a result, fewer households receive assistance in a year than there are units eligible for payment in a year.

Public Housing

Annual Total

1980

1,153,311

1,192,000

761,759

3,107,070

1981

1,318,927

1,204,000

774,524

3,297,451

1982

1,526,683

1,224,000

757,213

3,507,896

1983

1,749,904

1,250,000

663,424

3,663,328

1984

1,909,812

1,331,908

617,956

3,859,676

1985

2,010,306

1,355,152

577,780

3,943,238

1986

2,143,339

1,379,679

553,765

4,076,783

1987^d

2,239,503

1390,098

521,651

4,151,252

1988^d

2,332,462

1,397,907

496,961

4,227,330

1989^d

2,419,866

1,403,816

491,635

4,315,317

1990

2,500,462

1,404,870

481,033

4,386,365

1991

2,547,995

1,410,137

473,945

4,432,077

1992

2,796,613

1,409,191

428,986

4,634,790

1993

2,812,008

1,407,923

434,498

4,654,429

1994

2,925,959

1,409,455

413,999

4,749,413

1995

2,911,692

1,397,205

415,165

4,724,062

1996

2,958,162

1,388,746

404,498

4,751,406

1997

2,943,634

1,372,260

385,651

4,701,545

1998^e

3,000,935

1,295,437

359,884

4,656,256

1999^f

2,985,339

1,273,500

337856

4,596,695

2000

3,196,225

1,266,980

302,898

4,766,103

2001

3,396,289

1,219,238

262,343

4,877,870

2002

3,420,669

1,208,730

233,736

4,863,135

2003

3,476,451

1,206,721

179,952

4,863,124

2004

3,508,091

1,188,649

155,289

4,852,029

2005

3,483,511

1,162,808

128,771

4,775,090

2006^g

3,498,363

1,172,204

123,503

4,794,070

2007

3,532,079

1,155,377

100,595

4,788,051

2008

3,495,299

1,140,294

109,773

4,745,366

2009

3,528,620

1,128,891

97,862

4,755,373

Source: Table prepared by CRS based on data from the Department of Housing and Urban Development Annotated Tables for the 2001 Budget and Congressional Budget Justifications, Housing Payments.

Note: Unit data are not provided from FY2010 to the present because HUD no longer reports units eligible for payment and could not provide this data to CRS. HUD, as part of its Annual Performance Reports, publishes data on households in occupied rental housing units receiving assistance. However, the data are not comparable to those provided.

Acknowledgment

[author name scrubbed], former CRS Analyst in Housing Policy, and [author name scrubbed], CRS Information Research Specialist, were original co-authors of this report.