HUD Clarifies that the Insultingly Misnamed AFFH is not about “Affordable Housing”

Introduction by Smith Young “):”  Below, “program participants”, also referred to by HUD as “entitlement communities” are the towns, cities, and counties that take HUD grants.  HUD makes it clear that AFFH is only about low-income racial or ethnic minorities where program participants  will need to develop strategies to overcome allowing the concentration of low-income racial or ethnic minorities in or adjacent to geographic areas already occupied by racial or ethnic minorities!

“It should be noted that providing affordable housing is not synonymous with AFFH.  While the concepts may be related, there is distinction between AFFH strategies and strategies to provide affordable housing.  Providing affordable housing for low- and moderate-income families is not, in and of itself, sufficient to affirmatively further fair housing.  The delivery of decent, safe, and affordable housing provides a useful service, but by itself does not necessarily fulfill the goals and purposes of affirmatively further fair housing.

To affirmatively further fair housing, a program participant must take steps to ensure that the housing is available regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or familial status. The program participant also must consider the location of affordable housing and strategically leverage affordable housing as a means to overcome patterns of segregation, promote fair housing choice, and eliminate disparities in access to opportunity and disproportionate housing needs.

Affordable housing can be a tool that program participants use to affirmatively further fair housing. But, if affordable housing is predominantly occupied by low-income racial or ethnic minorities and it is concentrated in or adjacent to geographic areas occupied by racial or ethnic minorities, program participants will need to develop strategies to overcome segregation, including the siting of affordable housing in areas of opportunity and mobility strategies that provide access to areas of opportunity.”