The Boston Globe: Megan Smith (PhD’22) & Prof. Byrne Uncover Barriers to Subsidized Housing
The Boston Globe highlighted a recent study by PhD Candidate Megan Smith and Associate Professor Thomas Byrne revealing Rhode Island’s inconsistent and troublesome qualifications process for subsidized housing that exceeds what federal mandates require. In addition, the study revealed frustrations with attaining public records from housing developments. While this study considered Rhode Island independently, it could point to similar problems across the nation.
Excerpt from “‘Locked out’: Poor Rhode Islanders Face Unnecessary Barriers to Subsidized Housing, Study Says” by Brian Amaral, originally published in The Boston Globe:
People trying to get federally subsidized housing in Rhode Island face rules around criminal records, alcohol use, tenant histories and credit that go well beyond the guidelines laid out in federal law…The fact that they’re such a vague patchwork even when you can get your hands on the policies leaves people uncertain about whether they qualify for help, Smith and Byrne said. Smith said she often helps people who are appealing denials, like someone who had a possession charge two years ago and is now in treatment. They’re often messier than that. Sometimes they win, sometimes they lose.
“‘It doesn’t feel like there’s a lot of internal consistency,’ Smith said.
“Only 25 percent of people eligible for subsidized housing actually get it, according to a 2017 study they cite. That’s bound up in problems with housing supply, but these restrictions don’t help.
“‘There might be good reasons to impose some of these things for the benefit of potential other tenants,’ Byrne said, ‘but some of this stuff is really outrageous, and it’s hard to see how it benefits anybody, other than to keep people out.’”