2019 Urban Research Award: Locked Out: Examining the Use of Urban Housing Admissions Policies to Systematically Exclude Poor Renters

PI: Megan Smith, MSW, PhD student; School of Social Work
Co-PI: Thomas Byrne, PhD; Assistant Professor, School of Social Work

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) subsidizes about 4.8 million households throughout the country. Motivated by previous research and practice with individuals facing barriers to affordable housing, the team of investigators will examine how affordable housing providers’ admissions policies create barriers to housing for individuals with criminal records, poor landlord histories, and/or poor credit histories. Specifically, this project will focus on Rhode Island’s affordable housing admissions policies using data from all 39 municipalities.

Publications

Smith, M. & Byrne, T. (2021) “Locked Out: The Systematic Exclusion of Poor Renters From Federally Subsidized Housing.” Housing Policy Debate, 1-19.

View more projects funded through our Early Stage Urban Research Awards