Recently, United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Ben Carson, announced two new proposed regulations that would be detrimental to those currently living in low-income housing or those who are already struggling to afford rent.
The first of these regulations deals with those who are in public and HUD-assisted housing. For this type of housing, the rent that the person pays depends on their gross adjusted income. Currently, a person must pay 30% of their gross adjusted income. With the proposed regulation, it would raise the payment to 35%. Imagine a person who lives on disability. If this person only gets a few hundred dollars a month, every penny counts. That 5% could mean the difference between putting dinner on the table on a nightly basis or not.
The second proposed regulation would triple (Yes, you read that right!) the minimum rent that the lowest income households can have. Currently, it is $50. The new proposal would make it $150. What does this mean? The people who are seeing their rents triple could very well be homeless soon after this regulation goes into effect.
It’s easy to see, when you lay out the facts, how these two proposals could increase the homelessness rate throughout the United States. Although these regulations may not pass the House & Senate, it’s important that we raise our voices against these issues and ensure that the general public knows that these things COULD happen. It’s up to us to prevent it.