Author: Revere, Elspeth
Summary
This report discussed how multi-family buildings in Chicago obtained a clear understanding of the circumstances that affect these buildings which provide low-cost rental housing in modest-income urban areas. The purpose of the study was to develop a base of current information which reflects recent changes in the environment in which multi-family housing operates–high interest rates and energy costs, reduced federal programs, increasing age of the buildings, and high unemployment — which would support the policy panels of the Housing Abandonment Task Force. The study concludes that public policy must be implemented that will keep costs from rising; that financial institutions must offer affordable financing in small amounts for repairs and energy conservation improvements to reduce the number of buildings requiring total rehabilitation; and that buildings must be actively monitored for signs of deterioration to ensure that the resource of rental housing is not lost to modest-income urban neighborhoods.
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Housing in Crisis: Report of the Data Base Study Group of the Housing Abandonment Task Force
