Accurate, Focused Research on Law, Technology and Knowledge Discovery Since 2002

Category Archives: Housing

How Mortgage Finance Affects the Urban Landscape

Federal Reserve Bank of New York Staff Report – How Mortgage Finance Affects the Urban Landscape. February 2015. Number 713. Sewin Chan, Andrew Haughwout, and Joseph Tracy. “This chapter considers the structure of mortgage finance in the U.S., and its role in shaping patterns of homeownership, the nature of the housing stock, and the organization of residential activity.… Continue Reading

The Geography of Economic Segregation in America’s Metros

“The MPI aims to deepen our understanding of economic prosperity. Housed at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management, MPI’s mission is to develop a new understanding of, and inform, the broader public conversation about shared and sustainable prosperity that should be an essential part of democratic capitalism.” “Americans have become increasingly sorted over… Continue Reading

2014 Housing Vacancy Survey Annual Statistics

“These statistics provide vacancy rates, homeownership rates and characteristics of units available for occupancy for the U.S., regions, states and the 75 largest metropolitan statistical areas. Data for all geographies are available both quarterly and annually. Homeownership rates are also tabulated by age of householder for the U.S. and regions and by race/ethnicity of householder… Continue Reading

Housing Assistance Matters Initiative

Via the Urban Institute – “Decent and affordable housing has far-reaching consequences for people’s health, quality of life, and access to opportunities, but these consequences are not always well understood. To inform public debate about assisted housing policy and strengthen policy outcomes, Housing Assistance Matters highlights research and analysis about the need for and benefits… Continue Reading

Economic Report of the President 2015

“This morning, the Council of Economic Advisers released the 69th-annual Economic Report of the President, which reviews the United States’ accelerating recovery and ways to further support middle-class families as the recovery continues. The economy is recovering from the Great Recession at an increasing pace, growing at an annual rate of 2.8 percent over the past… Continue Reading

Household Debt Continues Upward Climb While Student Loan Delinquencies Worse

NY Fed news release: “In its Q4 2014 Household Debt and Credit Report, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York announced that outstanding household debt increased $117 billion from the third quarter. The one percent increase puts total household indebtedness at $11.83 trillion as of December 31, 2014. Total debt has gone up $326 billion… Continue Reading

The Deserving Poor, the Family, and the U.S. Welfare System

“The Eleventh Annual W. J. Usery Distinguished Lecture on the American Workplace, was held on Wednesday, October 8, 2014, at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies. Robert Moffitt, the Krieger-Eisenhower Professor of Economics, Johns Hopkins University [presented] “The Deserving Poor, the Family, and the U.S. Welfare System.” Professor Moffitt’s research focuses on applied microeconometrics… Continue Reading

Helping Families Involved in the Child Welfare System Achieve Housing Stability

Urban Institute Report – Mary K. Cunningham, Mike Pergamit, Abigail Baum, Jessica Luna. February 11, 2015. “The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)‘s Family Unification Program (FUP) provides low-income families involved in the child welfare system with housing vouchers. FUP is an important vehicle for understanding three issues: (1) the overlap between the child welfare system,… Continue Reading

CFPB Report Highlights Consumer Frustration Around Reverse Mortgages

“Today the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a report highlighting the top complaints for reverse mortgages. According to the report, consumers are frustrated with their loan terms, servicer runarounds, and foreclosure problems. To help consumers who already have a reverse mortgage, the CFPB is issuing an advisory with tips on how to plan ahead… Continue Reading

GAO Reports – HHS and Programs related to mental illness, Violation of Anti-Lobbying Provision and the Antideficiency Act

HHS Leadership Needed to Coordinate Federal Efforts Related to Serious Mental Illness, GAO-15-113, Published Dec 18, 2014. Publicly Released: Feb 5, 2015: ““Agencies identified 112 federal programs that generally supported individuals with serious mental illness in fiscal year 2013. The majority of these programs addressed broad issues, such as homelessness, that can include individuals with… Continue Reading

The US Treasury’s Credit Rating Agency Exercise

The US Treasury’s Credit Rating Agency Exercise – First Steps Out of the Private-Label Securities Desert. Laurie Goodman, Jim Parrott. Feburary 5, 2015. “As part of an effort to revive the moribund private-label securities (PLS) market, the US Treasury Department recently conducted an exercise with the major credit rating agencies. This exercise was intended to boost… Continue Reading