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Document Type: | General |
Publish Date: | December 2020 |
Primary Author: | Brandon Bridge, P.h.D., Economist and Director of Forecasting |
Edited By: | Arsalan Hasan |
Published By: | Bureau of Business and Economic Research |
Affordable housing is an increasingly difficult problem for many Montana communities. With relatively few affordable homes available for households earning a low income, and with much of the existing affordable inventory ageing and in need of rehabilitation, many households earning a low income are being priced out of housing markets. Highly cost-burdened households experience many difficulties with regards to health and well-being outcomes, educational attainment of minors, employment opportunities, etc., while those households priced completely out of the market experience the unending difficulties associated with homelessness. The difficulties of being highly cost-burdened or homeless extend from the individuals directly involved to the communities where they live. This imposes costs on community hospitals, schools, criminal justice efforts, infrastructure upkeep, and many other community institutions. Reducing these costs will be an increasingly pressing problem moving forward.