Populations face unique barriers to affordable housing

This week in the news we see several stories highlighting the different challenges individuals face in obtaining safe and stable housing. And we see that the solutions are not one size fits all. Building communities where everyone can afford to live requires us to understand the unique situations faced by different populations:

• Eleanor Smith, who has polio and has used a wheelchair all her life was once told by a potential landlord, “I don't want to rent to someone who has a disability,” This statement was made over 30 years ago and while housing discrimination is now illegal, many individuals still are challenged by this issue today. 

• Recent Wilder Foundation research found that today’s economy is impacting homelessness on Minnesota’s Indian reservations. It discovered that on eight of the state's 11 reservations, nearly 2,100 people were homeless or doubled up with friends or relatives.
   
• A new emergency youth shelter in St. Paul, The Booth Brown House, will add 11 shelter beds to the already existing 16 available for youth in Ramsey county. This is one step towards addressing the fact that on any given night, there are 1300 homeless youth in the metro area alone.

If you liked these articles, visit our Housing Matters! interactive online housing education resource center, and see our Housing News section for more articles. 

Solutions will only happen if we bring enough attention to this issue. Please share this post and help create dialog about housing solutions. 

Shari Hemmingsen, Housing Matters! Intern, and Jill Kilibarda, Education and Civic Engagement Program Manager, Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity