AEI Housing Center Releases Good Neighbors Index to Combat Housing Displacement Pressure Leading to Homelessness

WASHINGTON, May 9, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Good Neighbor Index (GNI) assembles data to reframe homelessness as a policy-induced scarcity of housing. Why does Los Angeles have 11 times the homeless displacement rate of Houston? To that end, it ranks every tracking area (Continuum of Care) in the nation based on its displacement rate (homeless/1,000 people) and displacement pressure (ratio of home price to income).

Key takeaways from the GNI:

• The GNI shows that over time heightened displacement pressures lead to increased rates of homelessness. Displacement pressure was by far the best predictor of homelessness among 54 variables that were tested.
• The impact of extreme lack of supply on the rate of housing displacement rate and consequent homelessness is stark.
• Eighty-four percent of areas (by population) with an extreme displacement rate also have extreme displacement pressure. These areas included most cities along the California coast including Los Angeles, Santa Rosa, San Jose, and San Francisco, and along the East coast including New York, Boston, and Key West, FL.
• Displacement pressure have been increasing rapidly, which may translate into higher rates of homelessness in the future. Particularly vulnerable are communities in California, Oregon, Washington, and around Denver and Miami.

In the short-term, the GNI can help evaluate local homelessness system's performance and tailor policy solutions to individual areas based on their unique needs. Over the medium and long-term, the GNI points to the need to add housing supply to keep an area's housing displacement pressure under control.

The GNI's two unique insight are:

• Housing displacement rates and consequently homelessness vary by area and thus require tailor-made solutions. These data show that solutions for California are different from solutions for the vast majority of the country.
• Housing pressure is best addressed with light-touch density (LTD), a tried and tested zoning approach that allows for moderately higher density. High tax interventions have proven ineffective. Instead, an LTD market-based approach that can lead to abundant housing.

To access the GNI Toolkit, please click here.

The AEI Housing Center will host a two-day hybrid convening at that American Enterprise Institute in Washington, D.C. on May 10 and 11 to unveil the GNI. For details and registration click here, or go to Good Neighbors: using housing data to reframe homelessness.

Media Contact Details:

Edward Pinto
American Enterprise Institute Housing Center
Washington, DC
https://www.aei.org/centers/housing-center/
[email protected]
240-423-2848

SOURCE AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC POLICY RESEARCH