State Framework for Delivering Targeted Housing Assistance to People and Places Hit Hardest by COVID-19

ABSTRACT

From the Document "The COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] pandemic has had devastating health and economic effects nationwide. The economic shocks have been worse for renter households and households of color. For the past couple of months, unemployment insurance benefits and eviction moratoriums in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act have kept vulnerable renters in their homes. But these laws have either expired or will soon expire, and many renters face an increasing risk of displacement unless quick action is taken. In this brief, we propose an approach for identifying the hardest-hit places and people who need relief, and we create a method of targeting housing assistance to renters and homeowners in the hardest-hit states. We developed an index using available state data and suggest a race-conscious method of directing resources. Our index weights hard-hit renter households and renters of color who are experiencing disproportionate housing insecurity and greater financial damage but less government support amid the pandemic. The index also offers a state ranking for those most in need."