LINK Houston is teaming up with the Rice University Kinder Institute for Urban Research to study where naturally occurring affordable housing and high-quality transit coincide in Houston. The project will highlight how housing and transportation access affordability are related and produce practical tools to help housing stakeholders and individuals make well-informed decisions about their housing choices and investments.
Housing and transportation costs are the two most significant, important household expenses. Although Houston is often viewed as an affordable place to live, Houston-area residents spend an estimated 25 percent of their household income on housing and another 20 percent on transportation according to Chicago-based Center for Neighborhood Technology.
Housing and transportation programs are most efficient and effective when developed concurrently. Access to affordable housing via affordable transportation options give people the freedom to make choices that fit their lives and their budgets.
As part of the study, we formed a task force to partner with us in developing two tools: a rubric for decision-makers to define and identify high-quality affordable transportation and a framework for housing counselors to use to guide home buyers and tenants to think about transportation costs in addition to their housing costs. The task force, comprised of a wide-range of experiences as well as housing and transportation expertise, will meet regularly to work on these tools and the broader study.
Our study is funded by the Cullen Foundation and will be released in the Spring of 2020. If you’re interested in contributing ideas or know someone with helpful insights on housing and transportation, email us at info@linkhouston.org.