Expanding the housing supply through conversions of the existing stock

Abstract

A large share of households remain poorly housed in the United States despite the steady improvement in overall housing conditions throughout the postwar period. Households that face the greatest difficulty in gaining access to suitable housing are those with low-income, i.e. those in the market for low-cost rental housing. These households have difficulty in gaining access to suitable housing because of the mismatch between the demand for such housing and the available supply. We examine conversions of existing multifamily housing as a way of expanding the housing supply at sub markets which directly serve low-income households. It is assumed that by expanding these sub markets, the barriers against access to suitable housing would be reduced for low-income households. We focus on the City of Boston as well as on two specific conversion projects to illustrate some of the merits and limitations of multifamily housing conversions as a means of expanding the housing supply at low-income submarkets.