By: Samaila Adelaiye, PhD, Research & Policy Fellow
INTRODUCTION
Rental assistance in the form of vouchers supports low-income households, ensuring that housing is more affordable for them. Starting in 1974 with the introduction of the Housing and Community Development Act, housing vouchers were introduced nationally as an alternative to public housing.[i] After numerous iterations, the Quality of Housing and Work Responsibility Act (QHWRA) of 1998 created the federal Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program we have today. Housing Choice Vouchers have become the largest housing subsidy program managed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Funding for the HCV program has never been sufficient to provide vouchers to all those that qualify. To help fill in this gap in coverage, a few states also have long-term state funded rental assistance programs in the form of housing vouchers.[ii]
Long-term rental assistance vouchers became more popular as public housing structures were demolished. These vouchers were favored because they offered a much lower cost to the government. Consequently, the responsibility for building affordable housing shifted to the private sector, with the government subsidizing housing for low-income families through the vouchers.[iii]
The federal HCV Program currently assists approximately 2.3 million families.[iv] However, there remains a gap between the need and the supply of these vouchers, and a few states and localities have followed the trend to create their own voucher programs to help low-income households gain access to housing they can afford.[v] Connecticut is one of the few states with a state funded program, the Rental Assistance Program (RAP). About 50,000 households in Connecticut receive rental assistance either through the state’s Rental Assistance Program (RAP) or federal HCV popularly called “Section 8.”[vi]
Housing instability and unaffordability are salient issues that affect many socio-economic outcomes and play a significant role in the disparities observed across the country. Housing costs are a heavy burden for many families and for low-income families it is worse.[vii] About 239,000 households in Connecticut pay 30 percent or more of their income on rent (a benchmark of affordability), and 126,000 households pay 50 percent or more of their income on rent.[viii] As in most parts of the country, stark racial disparities are reflected in housing cost burdens as Black and Indigenous people of color (BIPOC) tend to be overrepresented in lower income brackets. For instance, Black and Hispanic households in Connecticut are more likely to be renters than homeowners. They are also more likely to be cost-burdened, struggling with rent costs and housing instability, compared to white households.[ix]
Rental Assistance is expected to remove many barriers to housing security for low-income households. Given that vouchers play such a significant role in housing assistance, it is crucial to understand their impact on households and communities. It is necessary to determine whether they achieve their intended impact, identify any unintended consequences of the program, and explore other benefits that housing vouchers might provide beyond their primary goals.
Many states have modeled their state funded rental assistance programs after the federal housing choice voucher program. This review of the literature analyzes some of the research on major outcomes linked to housing vouchers and expounds on the research backing these claims and the evidence supporting these linkages. After considering the existing research on the impact of rental assistance programs, the report concludes with an overview of what the findings tell us about housing vouchers and what this means for long-term rental assistance programs as a policy tool.
[i] Schwartz, A. F. (2021). Housing policy in the United States. Routledge. 227-264; Gramlich, E. (2022). Rental Assistance Demonstration. Advocates’ Guide 2023: A Primer on Federal Affordable Housing and Community Development Programs and Policies, 4-1 -4-8.; Rosen, E. (2020). The voucher promise: “Section 8” and the fate of an American neighborhood. Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9780691189505
[ii] Ellen, I. G. (2020). What do we know about housing choice vouchers? Regional Science and Urban Economics, 80, 103380.
[iii] Rosen, E. (2020). The voucher promise: “Section 8” and the fate of an American neighborhood. Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9780691189505
[iv] Gramlich, E. (2022). Rental Assistance Demonstration. Advocates’ Guide 2023: A Primer on Federal Affordable Housing and Community Development Programs and Policies, 4-1 -4-8.
[v] Bailey, A., Bailey, P., & Rice, D. (2018). Innovative approaches to providing rental assistance: states and localities seek to support health and human services goals. Cityscape, 20(2), 53-72.
[vi] 2023 Affordable Housing Appeals List, Connecticut Department of Housing, 2023-affordable-appeals-list-formatted-for-annual-report.pdf (ct.gov)
[vii] Pratt, K (April 18, 2023). Rental Assistance Program Policy Brief. Partnership for Strong Communities. RAP-Brief-4.28.22-FINAL-KP.pdf (pschousing.org)
[viii] Authors tabulations of American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates Detailed Tables, Table B25070,
[ix] Adelaiye, S (2024). Fostering Stable Homes Tackling Housing Displacement for a Stronger Connecticut. Connecticut Voices for Children.; Pratt, K (April 18, 2023). Rental Assistance Program Policy Brief. Partnership for Strong Communities. RAP-Brief-4.28.22-FINAL-KP.pdf (pschousing.org)