We made two updates to the Vermont Housing Data Web site this week.
On Monday we did a regularly-scheduled update of the Directory of Affordable Rental Housing (DoARH).
The DoARH is a searchable database of all subsidized rental housing in the state.
Vermonters who rent their homes live in the 15th most expensive state in the nation for renters, according to a new report.
"Out of Reach 2008-2009" was released today by the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC), a Washington, D.C.-based housing advocacy group, and the Vermont Affordable Housing Coalition.
A new report shows people with disabilities who rely on Supplemental Social Security (SSI) income are hard-pressed to afford even simple one-bedroom or studio apartments.
The Technical Assistance Collaborative (TAC) and the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD) Housing Task Force publishes its "Priced Out" report every other year.
Uncertainty is a consistent theme among economists these days, with each round of projections for Vermont's plight worse than the last.
Columnist Robert Samuelson explained to the audience at a Vermont economy conference in early January the only other national economic experience like this was the spiraling inflation of the 1970s because, like now, people could not see where it would end.
We managed a significant accomplishment this week when we added a charting function to the Vermont Housing Data site.
According to an article that appeared on bloomberg.com yesterday, Vermont has the lowest foreclosure rate in the nation: 0.04% of all homes in the state.
"Vermont is avoiding the foreclosure crisis plaguing homeowners across the U.S., perhaps owing to traditions of thrift, modesty and self-reliance — bolstered by laws that protect buyers and land," writes Brian Sullivan.
We've completed our most recent update to the "Vermont housing data profiles" section of the Vermont Housing Data Web site.
New figures include:
The Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity (CVOEO) Fair Housing Project and VHFA have published a short report titled "Sub-Prime Lending in Vermont."
The single largest type of federal housing assistance is the home mortgage interest deduction.
In 2007, U.S. homeowners received $85 billion through this deduction1. Unfortunately, the benefits of the mortgage interest deduction are enjoyed primarily by the wealthiest Americans. Over 80% of the value of this deduction goes to homeowners in the top income quintile, according to a recent Pew Charitable Trust study on economic mobility.