Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

Much evidence shows the scale of current housing-related crises for renters in the United States. Lack of affordability, poor conditions, crowding, instability, and homelessness are all examples of housing problems prevalent among renters in the United States and especially low-income renters. Many of these problems are inter-related and reinforcing, posing challenges for assessing the extent and severity of housing-related problems and how to address them. For example, measuring affordability alone may not accurately represent the degree of housing insecurity faced by a household that is also overcrowded and living in poor conditions. Subsequent policy interventions based on such limited measures may, as a result, be less effective at helping renter households maintain secure and stable housing.

This paper proposes an examination of interrelated housing problems among renters within a broader conceptual framework of “housing insecurity.” Common problems renters may experience with housing, such as affordability, poor conditions, instability, crowding, and homelessness, can be described as dimensions of housing insecurity. In this framework, housing insecurity refers to a continuum along which a household may experience one or more dimensions, with varying levels of severity.

To better understand the full spectrum of housing insecurity, this paper aims to answer the following questions: How can previous limitations be reduced in measuring commonly studied dimensions of housing insecurity? Do multiple dimension of housing insecurity overlap, as hypothesized? Can dimensions of housing insecurity be combined to provide a more comprehensive quantitative measure, such as an index?

This paper will utilize both qualitative and quantitative analyses to examine all identified dimensions of housing insecurity, argue for the strongest operationalization of each, and analyze the extent of each dimension and their overlap. A qualitative review of existing research will be used to explain and critique current operationalizations of dimensions of housing insecurity. Subsequently, the American Housing Survey will be used to explore improved operationalizations of each dimension, examine correlation among dimensions, and propose a more unified measure, if applicable. Utilizing this data source, which includes a wide range of variables on all aspects of housing, will allow for replicable results and applicability of use across the United States.

Expanding the conceptual and operational understanding of myriad housing problems that are widely cited and studied but not uniformly approached has important implications for research and policy. Creating a better understanding of housing insecurity that includes multiple and reinforcing dimensions will address limitations in previous research and allow subsequent research to examine predictors in a more comprehensive and realistic way. Moreover, understanding the extent to which various dimensions of housing insecurity are inter-related and reinforcing should impact how policy responses are crafted. Acknowledging the extent of housing insecurity and its various manifestations should promote policy solutions that are appropriately strong and comprehensive enough to lift households out of all experiences of housing insecurity.