#148 Winter 2006-07

Got Voucher, Need Decent Housing

While a Section 8 voucher is a wonderful thing to have, it doesn’t always lead to decent housing. In Birmingham, AL, HUD auditors found that about 88 percent of units […]

While a Section 8 voucher is a wonderful thing to have, it doesn’t always lead to decent housing. In Birmingham, AL, HUD auditors found that about 88 percent of units rented by voucher holders did not meet federal quality standards. More than half the units had major problems, such as exposed wiring, water leaks and unsafe stairs. The auditors blamed the local housing authority for not reporting problems. Eleven of the landlords who owned property cited by auditors have since been disqualified from the Section 8 program. (Birmingham News, 11/4)

OTHER ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE

  • Domes for Sale

    May 4, 2008

    A community of 14 domes that housed about 30 homeless people in the shadow of the Staples Center in Los Angeles was for sale on eBay this fall. Designed by […]

  • OTS Reverses Course

    May 4, 2008

    Thanks in good part to a change in leadership, the federal Office of Thrift Supervision announced in September that it is reversing its regressive 2005 decision to cut CRA enforcement. […]

  • No Smoking Gun

    May 4, 2008

    It seems that HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson has been heard urging his staff to steer contracts toward people who like President Bush. But since an investigation by HUD’s inspector general […]