Section 8 Vouchers and Mobility

While HOPE VI has changed the face of public housing, it has not been a solution for the most vulnerable families. The Chicago Family Case Management Demonstration, an innovative model for serving these residents, provides them with intensive family case management, along with relocation, employment, financial literacy, mental health and substance use supports. This report focuses on one of the major challenges to serving vulnerable families: identifying which clients require the full intensive services. We develop a typology that provides a template for delivering wraparound services to public and assisted housing settings, including vouchers and units integrated into mixed-income developments.

Many policy makers and scholars regard the HOPE VI Program as one of the nation's most successful urban redevelopment programs (c.f. Katz 2009; Cisneros 2009). But despite its very real accomplishments, the HOPE VI program's record in meeting the needs of the original residents who endured the worst consequences of the failures of public housing is mixed. With its proposed "Choice Neighborhoods" initiative, the Obama administration has the opportunity to build on the experiences of nearly two decades of experience with HOPE VI. Incorporating intensive case management and permanent supportive housing for the most vulnerable into Choice Neighborhoods and any other comprehensive redevelopment efforts is one way to ensure that these initiatives truly meet the needs of all public housing families.

Battered housing prices are central to today's financial crisis. So far, the federal government has directed vast sums to homeowners and the institutions that financed them in ways that are not well-targeted. Meanwhile, the country is missing a good opportunity to stimulate demand for owner-occupied housing in the short run, while making progress in reducing shortfalls in coverage for housing assistance programs. This paper argues that a major expansion of Homeowner Voucher Program provides such an opportunity through an equitable and efficient policy alternative. Published in The Economists' Voice: Vol. 6 : Iss. 6, Article 2.

The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction and the Corporation for Supportive Housing Ohio Office developed a pilot program that provides permanent supportive housing to individuals released from several Ohio prisons. The Pilot intends to reduce recidivism and homelessness/shelter usage and decrease the costs associated with multiple service system use. The Urban Institute is evaluating the Pilot to explore whether it is meeting its intended goals. This Interim Report covers the first year of the evaluation—describing the Pilot and its eligibility requirements; the UI evaluation methods; and the characteristics and preliminary outcomes of the Pilot's first 57 clients.

If Congress and the Obama administration want to encourage housing demand without breaking the government bank, says Institute Fellow Robert Lerman, they should allow low-income recipients of rent subsidies to buy homes and use their subsidies to help pay the monthly mortgage, tax and insurance costs.