New Updates on The Edge

PD&R’s online magazine, The Edge, provides you with a snapshot view of our newly released research, periodicals, publications, news, and commentaries on housing and urban development issues. Stay informed on current topics and check back frequently, as our content is routinely updated.

Featured: Promoting Homeownership as a Strategy for Housing Affordability

In August 2021, the Urban Institute held a virtual event titled "Increasing Access to Homeownership: How America Can Increase Housing Affordability and Close the Wealth Gap." Panelists discussed strategies for governments and organizations such as community development financial institutions to promote equitable access to homeownership. Because homeownership can provide access to less volatile housing costs than renting, homeownership is an additional means of advancing housing affordability.

Message from PD&R Leadership: A Look Back at Hurricane Katrina

In the leadership message, general deputy assistant secretary for PD&R Todd Richardson reflects on Hurricane Katrina and the Gulf Coast’s long process of recovery from that disaster. Richardson reviews the scope of the disaster in the context of recent Hurricane Ida and examines the 10-year impacts of HUD’s Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program. This grant program is one of the most significant sources of federal recovery funding.

In Practice: El Monte, California Takes Initiative To House Local Homeless and Unserved Veterans

Opened in 2020, Baldwin Rose is a 55-unit affordable apartment complex serving low-income veterans and their families in El Monte, California. Baldwin Rose splits its units between residents who previously experienced homelessness, and very to extremely low-income families. The $33 million development features communal areas, including a playground, grilling area, and shared garden.

Trending: Los Angeles-Based Pilot Stabilizes Small Landlords in Vulnerable Neighborhoods

The Local Rental Owners Collaborative (LROC) is a pilot program, launched in April 2021 by a partnership of five philanthropic and nonprofit organizations, that seeks to stabilize small landlords of naturally occurring affordable housing in four Los Angeles neighborhoods and prevent evictions. The program directly pays 80 percent of tenants' rental arrears, in exchange for landlord forgiveness of the remaining debt.

Spotlight on PD&R Research: High Homeownership Rate and a Tight Housing Market in the Gary HMA

The most recent article in a series focusing on HUD's Comprehensive Housing Market Analyses (CHMAs) examines the Gary, Indiana housing market area (HMA). This HMA on the shores of Lake Michigan has an estimated population of 706,300. Unemployment rose in Gary during the COVID-19 pandemic, and now sits at 9.9 percent. The home sales market is tight, with vacancy and homeownership rates at an estimated 0.9 percent and 71.7 percent, respectively, and the rental market is balanced.

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