Trulia Puts Portland In Top 10 Places to Rent vs. Buy.

Housing Wire story is HERE.  A full list of rent vs buy cities is HERE.

Originally created and posted on the Oregon Housing Blog.

Like Airlines, Landlords Using Software to Optimize Rents.

WSJ story HERE.

Originally created and posted on the Oregon Housing Blog.

Fannie Mae Own-Rent Analysis Released, Covering Four Themes.

Fannie Mae has released their latest Own-Rent analysis for themes 3 and 4 HERE. 

Earlier Fannie had released their analysis for themes 1 and 2 HERE. 

A summary of Fannie Mae analysis is HERE.

The 4 themes Fannie Mae examined were:

1. Persistence of the Homeownership Aspiration and Housing Choices Throughout the Lifecycle,
2. The Impact of Changing Demographics.
3. Economics of Owning and Renting Through the Cycle and Across Geographies.
4. Renting and Owning Behaviors by Race, Ethnicity, and Immigration Status.

Originally created and posted on the Oregon Housing Blog.

OCAF Historical Table and All FR Publications, FY 1999 Forward.

Readers may recall that for last two years that I have posted ALL of the actual Federal Register publications of the annual HUD Operating Cost Adjustment Factors (OCAF) from FY 1999 forward, along with a table with the historical OCAF percentages for ALL states. [OCAF's are used to adjust annual HUD subsidized rents in project based Section 8 projects].

I have updated that PDF file HERE; it includes a state table AND the OCAF Federal Register publications for the 13 years from FY 1999 to FY 2011, including today's publication of the FY 2011 OCAF. The table also includes a 5 year and 10 year average OCAF for each state and the US in the far right columns.

I am sure this is the ONLY place you will find this record and comparison of state OCAF's for the past 13 years. 

For easy reference, I have added a permanent link to this document in the right pane, HUD OCAF Increases, Oregon and All States.

Observations: Oregon's OCAF is Higher than US Average this Year, Over 5 Years, and Over 10 Years

1. Oregon's FY 2011 OCAF of 2.6% is HIGHER than the US average OCAF (2.6% vs 1.7%).
2. Oregon 5 year average OCAF is HIGHER the US average  (4% vs 3.8%).
3. Oregon's 10 year average OCAF is HIGHER than the US average 10 year OCAF (3.8% vs 3.7%).

Originally created and posted on the Oregon Housing Blog.

Clear Language in Financial Service Reform Allows/Prioritizes Use of NSP Funding for Affordable Rental Housing Development.

In a prior post HERE I pointed out that the Financial Services bill had a provision that no longer required the purchase of foreclosed or abandoned homes in order to meet the 25% low income set aside for the NSP 3 program, or for unobligated or unexpended funding in NSP 1 and 2.  This opens the door in my mind to using those funds for rental assistance. 

I found one additional reference in the bill that signals CLEARLY that NSP money CAN be used to assist in rental development. Section 1497(a)(3)(D) reads:

"each ..government receiving grant amounts shall establish procedures to create preferences for the development of affordable rental housing for properties assisted with amounts under this Section."

Note that affordable rental development is not only ELIGIBLE, it MUST be prioritized by state and local government recipients.

Originally created and posted on the Oregon Housing Blog.

Man Bites Dog: Conservative CATO Institute Official Now LIKES Renters.

A positive sign when official from from conservative CATO Institute expresses support for renters, HERE.

Money quote:

"It is time we recognized renting as a viable option for many households, and starting treating renters as if they were as equal citizens as anyone else."

Official is Mark Mark A. Calabria, Ph.D., Director of Financial Regulation Studies at the Cato Institute. Before joining Cato in 2009, he spent six years as a member of the senior professional staff of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs. In that position, Calabria handled issues related to housing, mortgage finance, economics, banking and insurance for Ranking Member Richard Shelby (R-AL). Prior to his service on Capitol Hill, Calabria served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Regulatory Affairs at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and also held a variety of positions at Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies, the National Association of Home Builders and the National Association of Realtors.

Originally created and posted on the Oregon Housing Blog.

National Housing and Transportation Affordability WebSite.

HERE.

Click on map above (or this LINK) to see sample of some of measures available for the Portland Metro area:

2009 HOME Rent Limits Posted; Portland Change Table Calculated.

HUD has finally published the HOME program rent limits for 2009.
The main HUD page for HOME rent limits can be found HERE.

I prepared a table for the Portland Metro area showing the change in HOME program rent limits, using the CPD data for 2008 and 2009. The table is HERE.

For Portland Metro, I calculate that:

• Increases in maximum rent for Low HOME program units range from $20 for a one BR to $30 for a 4 BR.
• Increases in maximum rents for High HOME program units are HIGHER for a one BR ($45) than the $40 per month allowed for a 4 BR.

[If more experienced HOME program folks discover any problems with my calculations, please let me know].

Update-NLIHC Data: Oregon Renter "Housing Wage" State Ranking Improves Again, Up By 6 Ranks Since 2000.

[Update: Changed (improper) reference to 2 bedroom median rent to HUD 2 Bedroom Fair Market Rent]

The National Low Income Housing Coalition [NLIHC] Out of Reach study for 2007-2008 was released today HERE.

Housing Wage State Ranking
Each year one set of NLIHC data released is a state ranking on the "housing wage", the hourly wage required for a family to be able to afford the 2 bedroom HUD Fair Market Rent for that state. A HIGHER state ranking means a state is LESS affordable to renters; the worst ranking therefore would be 51,and the best 1. (51 areas include the District of Columbia. In order to allow comparison to 2000 my rankings exclude one of NLIHC areas , Puerto Rico, as it was not included in the 2000 NLIHC rankings. My rankings are thus one place different than the published NLIHC rankings for 2002, 2004,2006 and 2008.

My analysis: Housing wage state ranking

1. In 2000 Oregon ranked 30th.
2. In 2002 it improved to 29th
3. In 2004 it improved to 25th
4. In 2006 it remained at 25th
5. In 2008 Oregon's improved to 24th
   

Conclusion: Note that this measure effectively tracks changes in HUD 2 bedroom Fair Market Rents only, and not changes in actual family incomes. Using this NLIHC measure, relative to other states, Oregon's renter affordability has improved since 2000 with Oregon firmly in the middle of the pack among states on this measure.

My 2 page PDF compilation and table of state housing wage data from 2000-2006 NLIHC Out of Reach studies is HERE.

Housing Wage $$ and % Change
The 2008 Oregon housing wage was $13.87. Without adjusting for inflation/wage growth the housing wage increased by:

1. $2.20/19% since 2000. (Washington state grew by 26%)
   
2. $.41/3% since 2006. (Washington state grew by 7%)