American Renters Face Severe Affordability Problems: Live Webcast Monday, December 9

by Kerry Donahue Communications Manager Affordability problems for American renters have skyrocketed over the past decade, both in number and the share of renters facing them.  The inability of so many to find housing they can afford dramatically impacts the health and well-being of renters, as lower-income households cut back on food, healthcare, and savings, just to keep up. Our new report, America’s Rental Housing: Evolving Markets and Needs, will be released next Monday December 9 in Washington, DC.  The daylong event will feature a keynote address from HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan as well as remarks by Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper, Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, and many others.  The event will be webcast live from 11:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. (Eastern) at www.jchs.harvard.edu.    This new report on America's rental housing finds that half of U.S. renters pay more than 30 percent or more of their income on rent, up an astonishing 12 percentage points from a decade earlier. Much of the increase was among renters facing severe burdens (paying more than half their income on rent), boosting their share to 27 percent. These levels were unimaginable just a decade ago, when the share of Americans renters paying half their income on housing, at 19 percent, was already a cause for serious concern. Tune into the webcast on Monday for more findings from this new report.

AGENDA  (Watch the LIVE WEBCAST @ www.jchs.harvard.edu)
Monday, December 9, 2013  (Eastern time, subject to change)

11:00 a.m. Welcome Eric S. Belsky, Managing Director, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies Mijo Vodopic, Program Officer, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation 11:10 a.m. Keynote Address The Honorable Shaun Donovan Secretary, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development 11:35 a.m. America’s Rental Housing 2013 Research Presentation Chris Herbert Research Director, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies 12:30 p.m. Remarks Michael Stegman Counselor to the Treasury Secretary for Housing Finance U.S. Department of the Treasury 1:00 p.m. CONVERSATION: Future Directions in Assisted Housing Chris Arnold, Correspondent, National Public Radio (moderator) Erika Poethig, Fellow and Director of Urban Policy Initiatives, Urban Institute Mark Calabria, Director of Financial Regulation Studies, CATO Institute 2:00 p.m. Housing Finance Reform & Multifamily Lending   The Honorable Mark Warner U.S. Senator, Commonwealth of Virginia 2:30 p.m. Break 2:45 p.m. CONVERSATION: The Evolution of the Rental Housing Market Nick Timiraos, Reporter, Wall Street Journal (moderator) Thomas Bozzuto, Chairman and CEO, The Bozzuto Group Sean Dobson, Chairman and CEO, Amherst Securities Group Shekar Narasimhan, Managing Partner, Beekman Advisors 4:00 p.m. Remarks   The Honorable John Hickenlooper  Governor of Colorado This event will be WEBCAST LIVE at www.jchs.harvard.edu, and you can join the conversation on Twitter with #RentalHousing