ABSTRACT
The increasing volume of low-to-high rent conversions, and landlord abandonment of buildings exacerbate the shortage of low-rent housing. Federal low-income housing programs—public housing, Section 8 rent subsidies, Section 202 loans to non-profits for housing for the elderly and disabled—operate within this context of increasing scarcity of low rent accommodations. No federal subsidies exist for sheltering those in greatest need—the homeless. With supportive social and health services, some persons now homeless might be able to move into public housing or 202 and Section 8 units. Advocates for the homeless recognize two goals: immediate shelter for those now homeless, and the prevention of homelessness among those now housed, however precariously. People become homeless when their housing conditions become intolerable, or when they are displaced. General economic conditions, and state and local policies, have much to do with producing or alleviating homelessness.
