Affordable Housing Opponents Are Not Only Wrong, They're Also Incorrect

All this week, End Homelessness is highlighting the negative policies of various cities and the perceptions of their residents when it comes to coexisting with people struggling with homelessness. All too often, the consensus is simply, "NIMBY," or "not in my backyard." Be sure to check out the previous posts about Sylmar, California, Nashville, Tennessee, Washington, D.C., St. Petersburg, Florida, Grand Junction, Colorado and New York City.

A few years ago I was deeply involved in advocating for the development of a small affordable housing unit in an affluent Southern California community. The people in the city I was advocating in are good, caring people. They care not only about their own families, but about the lives of others, including the poor and homeless.

They are the type of people who give generously to food pantries and shelters, and donate their time around the holidays. But when the city proposed building a small low-income housing development in the place they live, near their homes and families, these good people were overcome by irrational fear, which brought out a nastiness they likely did not realize they were capable of.

Terrified by the idea of low-income kids attending their own children's schools, and counting as neighbors people whose life hardships they only saw on TV, the residents of this community created a nasty coalition to derail the affordable housing project, propagating lies about what affordable housing would do to their neighborhoods.

I say they propagated lies not because my personal politics were at odds with their own. I am someone who tries to listen to the data above all else. The fact is that low-income housing does not decrease property values or raise crime levels in and of itself. In fact, in many cases, properly implemented affordable housing has actually been found to be a community asset.

Studies have shown that the presence of low-income housing has no effect, one way or the other, on property values. Instead, what matters is how well the property is maintained. This is a pretty common sense finding. If a property looks nice, it raises the value of the surrounding properties. If it looks bad, it depletes the values. This is true of any development, regardless of who lives in it.

Residents of low-income housing benefit from mixing into more affluent areas where their children can attend better schools and there are more jobs available. The members of the community at large also benefit by bringing people in who can fill the demand for lower-paying jobs. Affordable housing works because it is more than charity; it helps make a whole community better.

I presented the very facts I am writing about in this post to the council in that Southern California city, arguing that low-income housing was not only good for struggling people trying to rebuild their lives, it is good for the community. Those good people who made the unfortunate choice to oppose the development attacked me personally during my speech, physically threatening me, accusing me of not living in their city (even though I did), and flatly telling me if their children were raped and murdered, it would be my fault.

NIMBYism is real, and it is ugly. But so is homelessness. Homelessness is very real, and it is awful for those experiencing it. Just because someone has had a difficult life does not mean he will be a difficult neighbor.

If we are to end homelessness, we have to combat NIMBYism with something greater than anger. We cannot yell and protest our way to more affordable housing. While the opponents of affordable housing are swayed by fear and mistruths, our arguments must instead come from a place of love for all people, and ultimately must be backed up by facts.

It is a fact that low-income housing helps end homelessness. It is a fact that low-income housing does not destroy neighborhoods. We must overcome the fears of those who oppose such developments appealing to their inherent good.

Opponents of affordable housing are not bad people, they are just making bad choices. We should be able to understand that. Indeed, many of those who experience homelessness are also good people who have made bad choices. We do not vilify the homeless for their troubles, we help them through it. NIMBY's proponents deserve the same treatment. We'll all be better off.

Photo credit: cdsessums