Minnesota Baseline Housing Measures

Guest blogger: Dan Hylton, HousingLink

Recently, the McKnight Foundation released the Minnesota Baseline Housing Measures, a three-year study of affordable housing trends in Minnesota from 2007 through 2009.  My organization, HousingLink, was privileged to have been commissioned to conduct this research that focuses primarily on work initiated and/or funded by the public and nonprofit sectors.  The goal was to present a public-facing progress report, as well as develop a framework to guide future investments towards those which can make the greatest impact.

McKnight’s evaluation of affordable housing work centers on the overall vision of “increasing family stability and linking families to greater opportunity in our communities.” To quantify progress towards that objective, seven representative measures related to affordable housing and production, socio- and  economic integration, and neighborhood stabilization were chosen, and a myriad of data sources were defined, tracked, and reported upon over the three-year period.

The report can be viewed at McKnight’s website, along with an introduction that provides a detailed explanation of the key themes that emerged from the three years of study.  Here is a summary of the key themes:

• Public  and nonprofit entities have been facing a challenge on two fronts simultaneously; not only needing to address an affordable shortage (only exacerbated during times of economic crisis), but also in the need to respond to a crisis in foreclosure that is unlike anything our nation has ever seen.  
• These entities have responded, particularly in the area of foreclosure, where there has been an unprecedented level of coordination and partnership at various levels. While foreclosures are still at historic levels, MN state and local government agencies, along with a coalition of nonprofit partners, have attracted federal investment and developed a number of initiatives ranging from a statewide network of foreclosure counselors to an interagency community land bank.
• Homelessness is on the rise and new affordable housing production cannot keep up with the challenge presented by a continuing high unemployment rate and increasing number of Minnesotans burdened by housing costs.  In addition, the share of the burden falling on non-profit and government entities during this time (what we in the affordable housing call “the gap”) has grown.  Federal investment, much of it in the form of the federal stimulus package, ramped up significantly in 2009; but that was a shorter-term solution, and the need for housing solutions to address those most in need is not going away.  
• In the midst of these overwhelming challenges to the community has been evidence of a strategic and holistic approach to affordable housing investment. In addition to trends toward the re-use and preservation of existing structures has been an increasing commitment of partners, from local to national levels, to housing investment made in the larger context of other factors that lead to sustainable, cost-efficient communities.  This includes transportation, job access, “walkability,” and various elements related to socio-economic integration.

I find it interesting that the Housing Measures study was conducted over a three-year period that was arguably the most turbulent period in the past half-century.  One might argue against the relevance of a three-year trend during a period of housing we’ve never seen before and may never see again. But a snapshot during this time affords us the opportunity to view organizations and agencies in the unique light of responding to an ever-changing and unpredictable environment. What is coming into focus is a re-thinking in how we develop communities and provide shelter for those most in need.  It seems to me that times like this, with resources tight and no proven road map for success, are the impetus for just the sort of innovation and risk-taking that might provide new strategies for future solutions.

Dan Hylton is the Research Manager at HousingLink.  HousingLink is a Minneapolis-based non-profit that serves as a crucial source for affordable housing-related data, information and resources.