Multifamily Properties: Opting In, Opting Out and Remaining Affordable

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's project-based multifamily
housing stock includes more than 22,000 properties with more than 1.5 million units,
representing a significant proportion of federally assisted housing for low-income families. The
multifamily stock was developed under programs created in the 1960s and 1970s to supplement
conventional public housing and promote privately owned development of affordable housing.
This study examines the characteristics of properties that have left the assisted stock,
either through prepayment or through opt out, and compares them with properties that have
remained in HUD programs. In addition, the study examines the affordability of rents charged at
properties that have left the assisted stock.