| Abstract: | The housing market boom over the last decade has been welcomed by most Americans as a positive economic phenomenon, with beneficial effects on families and neighborhoods. However, this housing boom, while benefiting homeowners, has hurt America's renting population, a population among which minorities and the poor are vastly overrepresented. As rents have risen, renters have been forced to commit a greater percentage of their resources to simply keeping their homes, and thus found it difficult to invest in their own properties. Steady or falling incomes have exacerbated this bind, while a worsening public education and transportation system has added to the burden, particularly for poor and minority renters. The Federal government has failed to respond to this growing crisis, instead choosing to cut or curtail major renter‐assistance programs. |
