ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the issue of expiring use restrictions on existing subsidized housing, followed by a discussion of the question of preserving housing built for affordable home ownership. It looks at affordability in the private market stock and some of the tools available to the public sector to address that issue. Meanwhile, a further problem emerged with respect to units constructed under the Section 8 new construction/substantial rehabilitation program between the mid-1970s and mid-1980s. States, and to a lesser extent, municipalities, have strong powers as well as some limited financial resources they can use to preserve expiring use properties. Moreover, many subsidized housing developments are also subject to state-level use restrictions, imposed in return for any of many different forms of state or local assistance, such as below-market land sales or tax abatement. In addition to the legal powers, state governments have used public resources to support preservation activities, including a growing share of their available allocations of Low Income Housing Tax Credits.
