Elizabeth B. Pearce, Katherine Hemlock, and Carla Medel

Federal, state, and local governments all influence housing access via laws, zoning rules, permitting processes, and regulations. In addition, the government has the power to regulate the way that most Americans access home ownership, which is a loan agreement between an individual or couple and a lending institution such as a bank or credit union. In fact, it is the lending institution who owns any home, until the individual or couple completely pays the mortgage, which is a combination of the home’s original price and the interest that is charged, typically over a 15-, 20-, or 30-year loan.

Together, government and lending institutions control who can borrow money, where they can access housing, the down payment required, and the interest rate that each family pays. These regulations do not treat all families equally: socioeconomic status, racial-ethnic identity, marriage and sexuality, and immigrant and documentation status have all played a role in lending policies over time in the United States. Immigrants and individuals with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status have difficulty securing loans due to ambiguous federal legislation affecting their status. People who do not have a social security number are eligible for loans, but these typically require a higher down payment and higher interest rates.

Home foreclosures added to the economic disparity following the housing market crash of 2008. Over half of U.S. states were affected by prior predatory lending practices and lack of oversight of the banking system. Uninsured, private market subprime loans were made available with looser requirements, quickly driving up the price of homes so that some people owed more on their house than it was worth. Many were considered “underwater in their loans” or “upside-down” in their home value and defaulted on payments. Banks took back homes and many families were forced into shelters, living in their cars, or the homes of family members increasing the numbers of cost-burdened, housing insecure, and houseless families.

8.3.1 Where Families Live

Considering the location of families in the United States, we will briefly look at three factors: geography, types of locations, which commonly include urban, suburban, and rural communities, and household size. Exurbs, a relatively new term, describes areas just outside of suburban communities which typically feature low density housing and large homes. These may overlap into farm or forested areas, but are not considered rural.

8.3.1.1 Geography

Population distribution is divided into four main regions by the U.S. Census Bureau in order to register the population: the Northeast, Midwest, South, and West; see the map below (Figure 8.6) for divisions within regions.

Figure 8.6. The Census Bureau divides the United States into four regions: the Northeast, Midwest, South, and West.

Population is spread unevenly across the United States with density focused in the Northeast and Southern regions, and two smaller divisions: the East North Central in the Midwest, and the Pacific division of the West, which includes Oregon (Figure 8.7).

Figure 8.7. Although the population of the United States is growing, the rate of growth is slowing. The four states that have the largest numeric growth in the past ten years are Texas, Florida, Arizona and North Carolina. The states with the most growth, percentage-wise, are Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, and Utah, experiencing between 1.7 percent and 2.1 percent growth in the past year (2018–2019) (United States Census Bureau, 2019).

Communities: Urban, Rural, Suburbs and Exurbs

Where families live can also be examined related to living in urban, suburban, rural, and exurban (prosperous districts outside of the suburbs) areas. Over the second half of the 20th century and the first part of the 21st century, families generally moved away from urban centers and into the suburbs. But the recession of 2008–2015 reversed that trend and urban areas made some growth, while suburbs and exurbs declined. Since 2016, the overall trend has again shifted, increasing family growth in suburbs and metropolitan areas (as opposed to urban cores), with Midwestern metro areas seeing the most growth (Frey, 2018). Values, racial-ethnic groups, and education are all factors in family location.

Environments and locations have differing health advantages and risks. Air quality, access to green spaces, clean water, and places to recreate are often described as “quality of life” factors. But a greater emphasis is critical as these are considered to be as important to overall health as are genetics and lifestyle (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2019). Air and water will be discussed more in depth in Chapter 10. With the advent of shelter-at-home restrictions related to the pandemic of COVID-19, home environments have become an even greater factor in our overall health.

8.3.1.2 Household Size

Household size had been declining from 1790 through 2010, going from an average size of 5.79 people to 2.58 people. Since then it has increased to 2.63 people in 2018. This increase is likely due to several factors. The recession affected families across the United States and many families “doubled up” in their housing. In addition, the trend of young adults living with their parents for longer periods of time decreases the number of independent households (Fry, 2019). And there is an increase in multigenerational households. This reflects the growing racial-ethnic diversity in the United States; Asian, Hispanic, and Black families are more likely to live in multigenerational households than are non-Hispanic White families (Menasce et al., 2019). The trend of increasing household size is important to note because it will likely impact the economy in the United States if it continues, as it will influence that amount of new housing construction.

8.3.3 References

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Hall, B. (2019, April 10). Corvallis, Benton County homeless council reboot moves ahead. Albany Democrat Herald. https://democratherald.com/news/local/corvallis-benton-county-homeless-council-reboot-moves-ahead/article_d2f33b88-a911-5d29-ba27-77bc499a1dfc.html

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National Center for Transgender Equality. (2019, June 9). The Equality Act: What transgender people need to know. https://transequality.org/blog/the-equality-act-what-transgender-people-need-to-know

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Joint Center for Housing Studies. Harvard University. (2016, June 22). The state of the nation’s housing 2016. https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/research-areas/reports/state-nations-housing-2016

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Portland State University. (2019, November 15). PSU’s Population Research Center releases preliminary Oregon population estimates. https://www.pdx.edu/news/psu%E2%80%99s-population-research-center-releases-preliminary-oregon-population-estimates

Frey, W. H. (2018, March 26). US population disperses to suburbs, exurbs, rural areas, and “middle of the country” metroes. The Brookings Institution. https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2018/03/26/us-population-disperses-to-suburbs-exurbs-rural-areas-and-middle-of-the-country-metros/

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Fry, R. (2019, October 1). The number of people in the average U.S. household is going up for the first time in over 160 years. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/10/01/the-number-of-people-in-the-average-u-s-household-is-going-up-for-the-first-time-in-over-160-years/

Menasce Horowitz, J., Brown, A., & Cox, K. (2019, April 9). Views on race in America 2019. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2019/04/09/race-in-america-2019/