The purpose of the current study is to examine the choices made by local authorities in two cities, to analyze how these cities have arrived at distinct means of implementing the Section 8 Certificate and Voucher Program, and assess how and why policy outcomes may diverge from the objectives of proponents of the voucher approach. The study expects to illuminate the ways in which local political and institutional dynamics have affected the implementation of the voucher program. (More)

In my dissertation, I problematize the current framing and understanding of U.S. racial and ethnic neighborhood integration in an increasingly heterogeneous society. Research questions and analyses are shaped by contemporary race theories, which emphasize how societal systems, structures, and racial ideologies condition institutions, outcomes, and a shifting U.S. racial order (Bonilla-Silva 2004; Omi and Winant 1994). I examine the often implied, yet rarely empirically validated, proposal that long-term racial and ethnic neighborhood integration is a primary remedy for the inequities and deleterious consequences associated with racial residential segregation. I construct a descriptive and analytical national portrait of the patterns and socioeconomic consequences of metropolitan neighborhood integration between 1980 and 2000. I extend existing research by illuminating national patterns that account for Latinos as well as Black and Whites, and by directly comparing neighborhood and group-level socioeconomic advantage/disadvantage for a range of integrated and homogeneous neighborhood types. Most importantly, I explicitly examine whether Black and Latinos residing in durable integrated contexts appear to be significantly more advantaged than those situated in long-term, predominantly minority communities. (More)

The goal of this research project is to increase our understanding of the homeownership experiences of low-income families. HUD has made a commitment to increasing the nation's homeownership rate, as well as increasing homeownership among low-income and minority families. However, we know comparatively little about the experiences of low-income homeowners and the extent to which homeownership contributes to their economic and social success. (More)

To understand the housing needs of foreign-born minority elderly and their utilization of community services, this dissertation aims to examine Korean American elderly as one case of minority elderly. (More)

This dissertation examines the relative impact of place and person effects on the earnings and employment opportunities of less educated prime age black males. (More)

Affordable housing is asked to address a broad spectrum of physical and social needs and to achieve goals ranging from shelter to family improvement. The United States spends millions of dollars annually developing, financing, and operating affordable rental housing for low-income households. However, there is no policy for what government-subsidized housing should accomplish for residents and little understanding of potential tenant outcomes. The lack of a comprehensive theory of affordable housing means that policies are made, funds spent, and units developed without goals anchored on sound theory. What then should be expected as the return on affordable housing investments, particularly given the discontinuity between its basic physical goal (decent shelter) and expanded social expectations (self-sufficiency)? Should only direct standard-of-living impacts (safety net outcomes like better and cheaper housing) be expected or should a deeper set of quality-of-life outcomes be expected? (More)

The purpose of this dissertation is to examine how the major federal housing block grant, HOME Investment Partnerships Program, has lead to changes in various elements of governance at the state and local level and the extent to which these elements affect housing policy development and housing policy outcomes. This project will assess the performance of HOME program participating jurisdictions and seeks to gain understanding of the relationship between performance and governance (statutes, policy mandates, organizational, financial, and programmatic structures, administrative rules and guidelines, and institutionalized rules and norms). (More)

The original intent of inclusionary zoning (IZ) policies was to produce affordable housing with little direct public subsidy, while encouraging neighborhood integration and overcoming community opposition to low-income housing projects (Calavita el al. 1997; Calavita and Grimes 1998). Many of the justifications for a mixed-income affordable housing strategy stem from the belief that neighborhood racial and, more specifically, income integration provide positive social, economic, and political externalities (Cutler, Glaeser, and Vigdor 1999; Schwartz and Tajbakhsh 1997; Wilson 1987). Since the adoption of the first IZ programs in the early 1970s, the outcomes of these policies in relation to their initial objectives has been mixed (Schuetz, Meltzer, and Been 2009). While affordable housing has been produced in some areas, there has been little scholarly investigation on why and how the effects of IZ vary across jurisdictions. (More)

The successful research question under which conditions subsidized housing generates spillover effects for values of neighboring single-family homes is extended in two ways: 1) By incorporating unsubsidized rental housing in the context of single- and multifamily zoning, and 2) by exploring in how far spatial dimensions of the data, research design, and methodology affect the reliability and precision of impact results from state-of-the-art adjusted interrupted time series/difference-indifference (AITS-DID) models. Although these models are widely applied, little systemic research exists that identifies and assesses potentially remaining sources of bias. (More)

The main purpose of the project is to examine the role that local politics has played in contributing to the creation of an underclass neighborhood. (More)

Asset-based policy has provided an important new frame for social policy for families (McKernan and Sherraden, 2008; Oliver and Shapiro, 1995; Sherraden, 1991) in which to enhance their "long-term economic stability and social protection." Asset theory and research, however, does not address the role of rental housing, despite the fact that the majority of low-income families rent rather than own their homes (Rice and Sard 2009). Given the recent foreclosure crisis and tightening of credit, it can be expected that –especially in high cost environments- the percentage of renters will grow (Clement 2009). The families with children who live in these rental units need them to be safe, decent, stable, and affordable, among other attributes if they are going to be able to take steps to build their families' assets. The research continues to mount that families without such housing have health risks (Acevedo-Garcia 2000; Smith, Easterlow et al. 2003; Lubell, Crain et al. 2007), have poor school achievement ((Tucker, Marx et al. 1998; Crowley 2003; Lubell and Brennan 2007), and difficulty with work outcomes (Cove, Turner et al. 2008) among other issues. These difficulties translate into families- adult and child members- who are challenged in their ability to build assets for the future. Lowincome female headed households represent an important case to explore both because they are extremely vulnerable and two generations are at risk. (More)