Senate Hearing Examines the High Costs of Providing Housing for the Elderly
The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs held a hearing last week, Affordability and Accessibility: Addressing the Housing Needs of America’s Seniors, which focused on the high costs of providing accessible and affordable housing for seniors. Witnesses providing testimony included Shannon Guzman, Senior Strategic Policy Advisor for AARP Public Policy Institute, Jennifer Molinsky, Project Director for Housing an Aging Society Program, Audra Hamernik, President and CEO for Nevada HAND, Thomas Wade, Director of the American Action Forum, and Norbert Michel Director of the Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives at the Cato Institute. During the hearing, Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) discussed the difficulties that operators of senior-oriented and assisted living facilities face in sustaining their business models and how that can have negative consequences for seniors seeking housing. When asked why it was so difficult for senior housing providers to stay in business, Shannon Guzman cited the importance of finding housing options that work for seniors. “We need to think about the needs of older adults, and their housing choices, whether or not they have the option to move wherever they need to, depending on their certain circumstances, their health conditions. We need to have housing options that work for them regardless of their circumstance, their health circumstances,” she said. “What we want to see would be for older adults because they say they want to remain in their homes and communities to be able to access certain services in and around their home and community to support them prior to having to go into a more institutional setting and that the ideal facility would allow them to remain active and independent in their own communities.” When discussing housing costs, Ranking Member of the Committee, Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA) stated government policies have mostly just made housing more expensive. “The inference is inescapable. When it comes to housing, government has often been the problem, not the solution,” stated Sen Toomey. “We will likely hear that the government should further subsidize senior citizens’ ability to “age in place.” To the extent seniors want to stay in their homes, that’s certainly their right. But we shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that it often makes perfect sense for seniors to decide to move out of the three- or four-bedroom, two-story home where they raised their children. When a senior downsizes, a new home comes on the market. Perhaps the buyer will be a young couple looking to start a family.”
To view the full Senate hearing, click here.
Fannie Mae to Expand HCVs by Lowering Financing Costs Offered to Owners
This week, Fannie Mae announced it has launched an initiative to expand the availability of multifamily units that accept federal Housing Choice Vouchers (vouchers). Its Expanded Housing Choice initiative, which will start in North Carolina and Texas for 12 months, will provide lower financing costs to the states’ multifamily property owners who accept vouchers. “As we fulfill our mission, we are working with the housing community to expand access to affordable housing for those who need it most,” said Hugh R. Frater, Chief Executive Officer, Fannie Mae. “Housing Choice Vouchers provide assistance to a wide range of individuals and families in need. But many voucher holders – especially people of color – are unable to use their vouchers before they expire or end up living in areas of concentrated poverty. Our Expanded Housing Choice initiative is a way to drive greater acceptance of vouchers in the multifamily market and, with that, greater equity and opportunity.” The new initiative aims to make the rental housing market more inclusive and equitable by expanding the availability of multifamily units that accept vouchers. This 12-month initiative will start in Texas and North Carolina and will incorporate feedback from customers, key stakeholders, and market participants and will be executed through Fannie Mae’s Multifamily Delegated Underwriting and Servicing platform.
To view the official press release, click here.