Gentrification and Changes in the Stock of Low-Cost Rental Housing in Philadelphia, 2000 to 2014

Gentrification and Changes in the Stock of Low-Cost Rental Housing in Philadelphia, 2000 to 2014

While many large cities have experienced gentrification, Philadelphia provides a unique case study. Although the city’s housing costs are relatively low compared with its mid-Atlantic peers, Philadelphia continues to have the highest poverty rate among the ten largest U.S. cities. In recent years, rapid development concentrated in a handful of neighborhoods has presented both opportunities and challenges for economic inclusion.
In the study, low-cost units were defined as those for which rent and utilities were less than $750 per month. Using tract-level Census data, the researchers found that between 2000 and 2014, the city lost 23,628 units with rents that fell below the $750 threshold. These losses were especially acute in gentrifying neighborhoods, such as University City and the Graduate Hospital neighborhood. These neighborhoods lost low-cost units at over five times the rate of nongentrifying neighborhoods.
The challenge of providing affordable housing to lower-income residents is increasingly pressing in Philadelphia since 20 percent of the city’s federally subsidized rental units will see their affordability restriction periods expire within the next five years. Of these rental units, more than 2,300 are in gentrifying neighborhoods.

Seth Chizeck

Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia

December 19, 2016

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By |2018-01-01T00:00:00-08:00January 1st, 2018|Affordability, Land Use Regulation, Reference|