Public Housing Successes
A different angle on life in public housing. National Public Radio (NPR) features an art exhibit that includes numerous photos of public housing residents who have had successes, both large and small
A different angle on life in public housing. National Public Radio (NPR) features an art exhibit that includes numerous photos of public housing residents who have had successes, both large and small
by Joe Belden
For those of us in the rural housing silo, the most significant November 4 result may be a fairly ho-hum and fully expected re-election in Eastern Kentucky. In the nation’s most rural Congressional district, House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-KY) ran against the same Democratic opponent he defeated in 2012 with 78 percent of the vote. Congressman Rogers’s re-election is actually great news for rural housing.
President Obama outlines a plan to make homeownership more accessible and sustainable. A centerpiece of the Administration’s proposal would be to lower FHA premiums by 50 basis points, potentially saving borrowers as much as $900 annually.
The Rural Development Leadership Network is hosting an online auction to help promote entreprenuership in rural areas. For more information, visit the auction homepage at https://www.biddingforgood.com/auction/AuctionHome.action…
Please Refer a Friend and encourage them to participate so they don’t miss the fun and excitement. Please respond to rdln@ruraldevelopment.org.
by Keith Wiley, Research Associate at the Housing Assistance Council
Rural mortgage markets continue to struggle in the aftermath of the national housing crisis.
The number of home loans in rural areas declined by 14.1% between 2012 and 2013, according to the most recent Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data. The drop-off in lending is largely related to refinance activity. Gradually increasing interest rates and tighter underwriting criteria have slowed mortgage refinancing nationally, as well as in rural communities. Refinance lending in rural and small town communities declined by 23% in 2013 from 2012 levels.
Rural home purchase lending, on the other hand, increased by 2.3% from 2012. After reaching a 10-year low in 2011, rural home purchase loans increased for the past two years to 440,489 in 2013.
While these trends suggest an improvement in home sales, rural and small town home purchase loans remain 52% below the pre-recession levels of 2006. Home purchase loans continue to make up a smaller portion (35%) compared to refinance loans (57%) of all rural lending activity.
Read the full story at The Daily Yonder
September 25, 2014 – USDA Rural Development says that the continuing resolution (CR) to extend FY14 funding levels through December 11 also extends a provision related to the definition of rural used for the USDA rural housing programs. The FY14 appropriations law prohibited declaring any communities ineligible for the rural housing programs if they were eligible on September 30, 2013. President Obama signed the continuing resolution into law on September 19. As its name implies, the CR continues provisions of the FY14 law, including the prohibition on making places ineligible.
If a new FY15 appropriations law had been enacted, communities could have been determined ineligible based on population – if their populations grew to over 35,000 – or based on no longer being considered “rural in character.” USDA recently suspended all “rural in character” changes until at least September 30, 2015, so the CR’s suspension of ineligibility applies only to places with populations over 35,000. It will last until Congress enacts, and the President signs, an FY15 USDA appropriations law. It is possible that additional CRs will be adopted beyond December 11, maybe even for all of fiscal year 2015 (through September 30, 2015).
The Obama Administration invites a new round of eligible applicants to apply for a Promise Zone designation. HUD will designate six urban communities and USDA at least one rural and one tribal community as Promise Zones. This initiative targets high-poverty communities for job creation, economic development, and additional special assistance in an effort to drastically improve conditions for communities suffering persistent poverty. Applications are due November 21, 2014 by 5:00 PM EST.
To assist communities with the application process, HUD and USDA are hosting three Promise Zone Initiative Webcasts:
Tribal Webcast
September 29, 2014, Monday
1:00-2:00p.m. EST (please adjust for your local time)
Rural Webcast
September 29, 2014, Monday
3:00-4:00 p.m. EST (please adjust for your local time)
Urban Webcast
October 1, 2014, Wednesday
3:00-4:00 p.m. EST (please adjust for your local time)
HAC would like to congratulate John Henneberger of Texas Low Income Housing Information Service on his selection as a 2014 MacArthur Fellow. John received the honor in in recognition of his innovation with regard to post-disaster recovery.
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While there are now fewer homeless veterans than in the past, there are growing number of homeless veterans with families, including many women. NPR examines the unique needs of these populations.