Found a good "Shortages" link? Let Us Know!

Please use the link (above) to report any shortages that you notice in your area, regardless of the categories listed. This includes foods, fuels, candles, ammunition, tools, parts - anything you went looking for and couldn't find.

The Affordable Housing Shortage: Considering the Problem, Causes and Solutions by Ron Feldman, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis - Banking and Policy Working Paper 02-2
August 2002: Many observers claim that we are in the midst of an “affordable housing shortage” or, even worse, an “affordable housing crisis.” The primary concern is that too many households live in “unaffordable” rental units. We hope to clarify the current debate by first measuring the size of the problem, then diagnosing its underlying causes and, finally, discussing treatments that policymakers should consider. While our review is hardly exhaustive, we conclude that a shortage of income is largely behind the housing affordability problem despite the current focus on housing. Policymakers should recognize that government financing of new housing units is unlikely to be a cost effective response to low household income.

How Critical Is California’s Housing Shortage? High housing prices, low vacancy rates, and low levels of new construction have convinced many observers that California is experiencing a critical housing shortage, especially in the state’s largest metropolitan areas. Supporting this view is the fact that the number of persons per housing unit has increased in California even as it has declined in the rest of the nation. Other indicators, however, show that California’s housing shortage is not so severe and may not even exist in many regions. For example, the real median value of a California home was lower in 2000 than in 1990, and incomes during that decade rose faster than rents or housing prices in much of the state. Moreover, high prices and rents in the state’s largest metropolitan areas are not a new phenomenon. Homeowners and renters have long paid premiums for living in choice areas, and many observers attribute these premiums to high incomes and abundant local amenities rather than to shortages.

STUDY FINDS AFFORDABLE HOUSING SHORTAGE AT ALL-TIME HIGH ~ Three of Every Five Poor Renters Spend More than Half of Income on Housing: The shortage of low-rent housing in the United States reached a record high in 1995 when the number of low-income renter households exceeded the number of low-cost rental units by 4.4 million, according to a study released by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. With nearly two low-income renters for every low-cost unit, most poor renters paid large proportions of their incomes for housing, the study found. Based on Census data for 1995, the most recent data available, the study reported that three of every five poor renters paid more than half of their incomes for rent and utilities. The typical poor renter family paid 60 percent of income for these costs. To be considered affordable under federal standards, housing should consume no more than 30 percent of a low-income family's income. The study found 82 percent of poor renter families paying more than 30 percent of income for rent and utilities in 1995.

Boom in the Mountains Creates a Housing Shortage By JIM ROBBINS [February 17, 2007] BIG SKY, Mont. — The Big Sky region, just north of an entrance to Yellowstone National Park, has boomed in recent years, attracting skiers and other outdoor enthusiasts and fueling a construction and employment boom.

Please Read The Website Disclaimer!
Copyright 1986-2012, The Survival & Self-Reliance Studies Institute (SSRsi), All Rights Reserved
Site conceptualized, designed, created & maintained by MEG Raven
Snail Mail: SSRsi, PO Box 2572 Dillon, CO. 80435-2572