HUD's Evaluation Policy states, under the principle of transparency, that "If the findings of a HUD evaluation will have broad public interest and includes a counterfactual, PD&R will publish a synopsis of the research design, data collection and analysis plan soon after it is approved…" The enclosed RD/DCAP outlines the approach that the research team from Abt Associates will take in carrying out the Family Options 12 Year Study. This final RD/DCAP has been approved by the Contracting Officer's Representative for this research effort after review and comment from multiple HUD program offices. Learn More >>

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Since the 1999 Olmstead U.S. Supreme Court decision affirming the right of people with disabilities to live in integrated housing settings according to their needs, there has been an expansion of community-based housing assistance and services and support options for people with disabilities. HUD provides assistance specifically for non-elderly persons with disabilities through its Section 811 project-based rental assistance and Mainstream and Non-Elderly Disabled (NED) voucher programs. Previous research has documented persistent structural barriers to providing housing for persons with disabilities, but less is known about the challenges that emerge in the process of applying for housing assistance and locating and obtaining a unit that meets individual needs. Learn More >>

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This report provides interim findings for the evaluation of the first cohort of grantees under HUD's Older Adults Home Modification Grant Program (OAHMP). The purpose of the OAHMP is to help communities implement programs that provide home modifications and limited home repairs to meet the needs of low-income older adult homeowners as they age. HUD issued the first NOFO for the OAHMP in March 2021 and in August 2021 awarded grants to 32 nonprofit organizations, state and local governments, and public housing agencies. Three OAHMP grantees are acting as grant "administrators" for an additional 15 subgrantees, i.e., although they themselves are not implementing the OAHMP in their community, they oversee implementation of the program by their 15 subgrantees. The program provides up to $5,000 per household for home modifications and requires the involvement of an Occupational Therapist (OT), Occupational Therapist Assistant (OTA), or Certified Aging in Place Specialist (CAPS) to ensure the home modification process addresses the client's specific goals and promotes their full participation in daily life activities. The purpose of the evaluation is to (1) assess the impact of the program on client outcomes related to independent living (such as difficulties with ADLs and IADLs, falls, and unplanned healthcare usage) using a pre/post design model; (2) assess the process grantees use to implement the OAHMP; and (3) collect feedback directly from OAHMP clients' about the program processes. Learn More >>

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Researchers sought to review and test home modifications that could improve accessibility for people with disabilities of semi-detached and non-detached residential buildings (townhomes and row houses), which often have elevated entrances, narrow floorplans, and functionality (kitchen, bathrooms, and bedrooms) spread among several levels. Focus groups of users, caregivers, and professionals identified several areas of the home, such as bathrooms, stairs, laundry room, and entryway or entrances, as presenting some of the greatest challenges for accomplishing daily activities and ease of use. The focus groups also confirmed results of a literature review that highlighted the importance of the appearance of assistive devices in the home, the need for standard methods of evaluating assistive devices, and the central importance of affordability for making modifications feasible. An interdisciplinary advisory group selected ten promising accessibility products for initial assessment in the townhouse and rowhouse environment: All-push door, FlexStep, fixture-integrated rails/handholds, toilet rise/step combination, SuperPole, StairSteady, vehicle lift, adjustable height toilet, movable storage wall, and turntable/carousel. Four of these assistive technologies were installed and tested further. The results reveal the need for further innovation to focus on low-cost and affordable assistive devices that install permanently in the home, as most firms producing assistive products in the U.S. focus on personal assistive devices, generally regarded as medical devices, for those with mobility related issues. Learn More >>

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This report documents the results of the evaluation of the Families in Transition (FIT) program. FIT was an innovative pilot program based in the city of Chicago that created 100 units of permanent supportive housing (PSH) for families of Chicago Public Schools (CPS) who were experiencing homelessness or doubling up with others. FIT aimed to promote long-term residential stability by coupling permanent housing with case management services using a trauma-informed and strength-based approach. The Inclusive Economy Lab (IEL) at the University of Chicago evaluated the program to measure the effects on students' academic engagement, as well as their families' housing stability. IEL's impact evaluation uses a difference-in-difference design and relies on homelessness data from Chicago's Homeless Management Information System (HMIS), as well as student academic data from CPS. The study found the program yielded increases in housing stability and provided some suggestive evidence of the program's potential to reduce school moves. However, the study found no evidence that the program increased school attendance or grade point averages (GPAs). Data from focus groups with participants revealed both the program's value to families as well as some unanticipated consequences of the program's structure, including intrusive monitoring of some participating families by their landlords. Learn More >>

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In April 2021, HUD and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established an interagency agreement (IAA) to leverage opportunities and resources in support of shared agency priorities related to aging in place, which refers to "the ability to live in one's own home and community safely, independently, and comfortably, regardless of age, income, or ability level." The first priority of the IAA was to assess evidence informed approaches for affordable housing programs that coordinate health, wellness, and supportive services to help older adults remain healthy, age in their community, and reduce their use of costly health care services. The subject report supports Strategic Goal 4C: Integrate Health and Housing from HUD's FY 2022-2026 Strategic Plan, which includes a strategy to prioritize aging in place for older adults. This report supports the first two goals of the IAA: identify evidence-informed policies and practices related to aging in place and narrow the scope to what is needed, relevant and immediate for HUD-assisted tenants at this time. Learn More >>

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Prior research from the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) and HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R) show older adults receiving federal housing assistance face disproportionately high rates of chronic conditions and health care utilization. Coordinated services may help meet the needs of HUD-assisted adults and allow them to remain in an independent living setting as they age. HUD-assisted adults with Medicare Advantage (MA) coverage could potentially benefit from the care coordination and non-medical benefits offered by private MA plans. However, prior to this project, HUD and ASPE did not previously understand the uptake of MA coverage among HUD-assisted persons. Learn More >>

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This publication identifies ways cities can support the development of mixed-used, transit-adjacent housing. The author compares urban development policy approaches in the United States and Germany and highlights publicly-led projects in three cities in the United States—Atlanta, Georgia; St. Louis, Missouri; and Seattle, Washington—and three cities in Germany—Berlin, Frankfurt, and Munich. After identifying barriers to publicly-led development, such as resident opposition to new construction, the author identifies promising ways the highlighted cities advanced significant new housing construction. Learn More >>

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The purpose of the Rent Reform Demonstration was to test an alternative to the current rent-setting system for families using housing choice vouchers (HCVs). The goals of the alternative rent-setting model being tested were to incentivize employment and reduce the complexity and burden (and, thus, the cost) of administering the rent policy, while not causing unnecessary hardship for HCV households. Using a rigorous random assignment design, the demonstration began enrolling voucher holders in 2015 in four cities at four Moving to Work (MTW) public housing agencies (PHAs) sites with approximately 6,600 HCV assisted households participating. The current report documents the technical support provided by the study team, illustrates operationally how an interested PHA could implement various elements of the alternative rent policy tested in the Rent Reform Demonstration, serves as a resource for PHAs thinking about how to operationalize the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act (HOTMA) of 2016 statute that requires the use of prior year's income, and provides guidance to PHAs implementing new rent policies in the Moving to Work (MTW) Expansion for Cohort 2, Stepped and Tiered Rent Demonstration (STRD). Learn More >>

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The Housing and Children's Healthy Development (HCHD) study was designed to advance our understanding of the contribution of children's residential context to their well-being. The HCHD study emanates from a multi-year effort of the MacArthur Foundation's "How Housing Matters for Families with Children" ("Housing and Children" for short) Research Network. Learn More >>

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Programs of HUD describes the major rental, mortgage, grant, other assistance, and regulatory programs of the Department. It is through these programs that HUD works to strengthen the housing market to bolster the economy and protect consumers, meet the need for quality affordable rental homes, utilize housing as a platform for improving quality of life, and build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination. Learn More >>

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