PHAs

Gate House Vice Chairman Hunter Kurtz joined @ConsultQuadel President and  @Forbes_Books contributor Katie Goar for her podcast series “Change Makers with Katie Goar, Finding the right solutions for the affordable housing community” to share his insights on affordable housing through the lens of his experience in public housing and community development. Based on his experience as former HUD Public & Indian Housing Assistant Secretary, his career serving in other significant roles at HUD and Michigan state government in Detroit, and his current work with Gate House Strategies, in Part 1 of the series, Hunter discusses his career path in affordable housing, specific challenges and solutions to solving current supply constraints in affordable housing including through programs like “Faircloth to RAD” (the Rental Assistance Demonstration program), the importance of graduating renters on public assistance into market rate units, combatting veteran homelessness through programs like the HUD-VASH program, and what it will take generally to improve the shortage of affordable housing in America.

In Part 2 of the series, Hunter discusses the work of Gate House’s new subsidiary, Gate House Digital, including our colleague Dain Ehring’s perspective on the emergence of Artificial Intelligence in mortgage lending, the receipt of the “Sammies Award” by his former HUD colleague’s for their mutual work preventing homelessness of foster youth aging out of the program, his work with public housing authorities and the success of PHAs during the height of the Covid pandemic, and being part of “the rebirth of a great American city,” Detroit, where he resides today.

Few issues are more salient to the challenges our country faces today than the shortage of decent, safe, affordable housing.

As became abundantly clear during the COVID-19 pandemic, our homes are the foundation of much of our lives, they have a profound effect on our health and well-being, and impact our education and productivity, as well as our ability to take advantage of opportunities in a free country.

As the coronavirus forced Americans to use their homes as safe havens, offices, and classrooms, it also put increased pressure on public and private housing markets that were already undersupplied and putting greater numbers of vulnerable citizens at risk.

And as the nation focuses on fairness and equity throughout our society and economy, it is evident that housing is integral to that fabric of American life, and, ultimately, the belief that everyone has a stake in its success.

Both in response to COVID-19 and in the Administration’s focus on infrastructure, we are seeing an unprecedented increase in funding for affordable housing.

The latest round of COVID-19 funding included over $46 billion for rental assistance, funds that will help individuals and families either get back on their feet or simply maintain life without the stress of whether there will be a roof overhead.

There is another staggering $200 billion being proposed in Washington through increase in the budget and infrastructure.

All of this is presenting tremendous possibilities, providing potential new funding sources for communities, developers, and public housing authorities. The increase in the Capital Fund for public housing authorities, for example, presents both private public sector partners with enormous opportunities over the next few years to improve the current affordable housing stock and to expand it as well.

These opportunities are coupled with enormous challenges to get it right in order to make a lasting impact on the lives of millions of people. We are already hearing the frustrations with trying to deploy this kind of money in a short period of time. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission gave notice to the largest landlords this week that the rules and tenant rights will need to be followed.

We have new and more administrative hurdles to spending this funding quickly and wisely. Stakeholders are going to need assistance to ensure they are following the rules and deploying the funds in an effective and efficient manner, a manner that not only helps the people intended to be helped but also ensure funds are spent in a timely fashion.

The timing of deploying funds will determine the ability of individuals, families, and communities to more fully recover and achieve goals that will impact their lives for many years.

-Hunter Kurtz, Vice Chairman and Founding Partner, Gate House Strategies