The Politics of Housing

There is a great deal of ferment in the housing field at present, but not much action. Rhetoric has far outrun (and in a sense diverts attention from) any corresponding commitment to allocate resources. The housing problem is shaking down to an easily identifiable form, following resolutions of the anomalies caused by the Depression and War. Those with adequate income by and large are getting adequate housing, and the private sector, strategically assisted by the government—notably via FHA and VA mortgage insurance and urban renewal—works moderately well to satisfy the housing needs of middleand upper-income groups.

The vestigial housing problem, although by no means trivial— at a minimum 12 million U.S. families are living ...