Los Angeles Faces Affordable Housing Crisis Amid Political Challenges

Affordable Housing in Los Angeles: A Growing Concern

For more than two decades, the low rent on Marina Maalouf's apartment in a blocky affordable housing development in Los Angeles' Chinatown was a saving grace for her family. However, in 2020, that grace had an expiration date. The landlord, no longer legally obligated to keep the building affordable, hiked rent from $1,100 to $2,660 in 2021—out of reach for Maalouf and her family.

Maalouf's nights are haunted by fears her years-long eviction battle will end in sleeping bags on a friend's floor or worse. As Americans continue to struggle under unrelentingly high rents, as many as 223,000 affordable housing units like Maalouf's across the U.S. could be yanked out from under them in the next five years alone.

The Impact of Tax Credit Expirations

Those affordable housing units were built with the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, or LIHTC, a federal program established in 1986 that provides tax credits to developers in exchange for keeping rents low. The expiration of these credits could push families into a housing market where costs can easily consume half a paycheck.

• 223,000 units at risk of loss
• Rent increases threaten low-income families
• Political action is crucial for affordable housing