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Affordable housing is a critical aspect of urban development in cities with high housing demand, with the world population urbanizing at a consistent rate and a widening wealth gap in almost every society. Governments worldwide have attempted to address this issue by building housing units for low-income households with varying levels of success. This paper examines the factors that have contributed to the success of government-built housing in Singapore, which has been able to meet demand, compared to New York City, where demand has not been met. The study finds that Singapore’s government has taken a comprehensive approach to housing, including strict regulations, financing mechanisms, and active involvement in housing provisions, while New York’s government has faced funding challenges, political barriers, and insufficient coordination among government agencies. The paper concludes that a holistic approach that involves effective planning, financing, and implementation is essential to meet the demand for housing in urban areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Housing markets are closely related to monetary policy. This paper studies the link between housing frictions and the effectiveness of forward guidance. A housing collateral constraint and forward guidance shocks are incorporated into a standard medium-scale New Keynesian Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium (DSGE) model. Our main results produce a number of important implications. First, financial frictions emanating from the housing market dampen the effectiveness of forward guidance on the economy. Second, forward guidance shocks generate welfare gains, though the magnitude of these gains declines when housing frictions increase. Housing frictions also attenuate the effect of forward guidance at the zero lower bound. Finally, this article provides a solution to "forward guidance puzzle" of Del Negro, M., M. P. Giannoni, and C. Patterson (2012. "The Forward Guidance Puzzle." In FRB of New York Staff Report, 574). Thus, policymakers should consider housing frictions when examining the effects of forward guidance on the economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates a taken-for-granted institutional form, shelters for unhoused New Yorkers, through the neo-institutional lens of institutional inertia and critical case study methodology. It focuses on the external shock of COVID-19, NYC's use of unoccupied hotels for social distancing, and the return to shelters when COVID waned. For guidance, we examine other instances of interrupted institutional inertia following shocks. Using Lewin's force field analysis, we explore why changes to some institutional forms amidst COVID persisted while novel approaches to shelter dissipated. We conclude that directly involving unhoused people in the design and implementation of homeless services may improve outcomes. Human service professionals share a body of knowledge and assumptions – a kind of echo chamber that amplifies and confirms beliefs. It is important to look beyond traditional and familiar models of service delivery to find alternative ideas and approaches that may be effective. Returning to Kurt Lewin's concept of force fields provides opportunities to think effectively and holistically about how to modify or change services, policies, and organizations. People served by human services – those with lived experiences – possess unique expertise that can inform organizational decisions and planning in new and helpful ways. As practitioners, we need to find ways to be more inclusive of the perspectives and ideas of those our programs serve through participatory methods of planning, decision making, and evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coronavirus pandemic highlighted the deep-rooted links between poor housing and poor health, particularly for working class communities of colour, for whom the right to the city is systemically undermined by unaffordable, precarious and sub-standard housing. This paper examines these issues against the background of a grassroots movement against evictions in New York during 2021. It describes and discusses the organisation, tactics and strategies of that movement as it attempted to challenge the dominance and norms of the real estate industry. It suggests that the pandemic engendered a radical shift in the demands of tenant and housing justice organisations, which led to New York being virtually eviction free for 22 months. While this success partly arises from the particular circumstances of New York, it is argued that there are lessons to be learned for housing campaigns elsewhere. However, questions are raised about the extent to which 'professionalised activism' represents a sustainable model and the capacity for local mobiisations to influence national political forces at a time of unprecedented volatility in an age of crisis capitalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The changing geography of male same-sex couples over the last decade has important implications for LGBTQ families and communities. While recent scholarship clearly documents that male same-sex couples are becoming more geographically diffuse, less clear is what locational factors drive this change. Some explanations center on the increased cost of housing in established "gayborhoods." Others point to increasing social acceptance of same-sex couples opening up new residential opportunities. This paper explores these explanations in a spatial regression model that uses neighborhood attributes to predict change in the neighborhood concentration of male same-sex couples, while also accounting for spatial spillover effects from neighboring areas. Data come from the 2009–2013 and 2014–2018 American Community Surveys for four metropolitan areas: New York, Chicago, Atlanta, and San Francisco. Results suggest that gentrification of gayborhoods is generally associated with declining concentrations of male same-sex couples in these areas. But across the four metropolitan areas, there are notable differences in whether same-sex concentrations are more sensitive to housing values, rental costs, or the supply of affordable housing units. Outside of gayborhoods, increasing housing costs are generally associated with increasing same-sex concentrations. These findings add nuance to our understanding of gentrification's impacts on same-sex couples and affirm that housing affordability is a key concern among same-sex populations. We discuss the theoretical and methodological challenges of continued study in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public spaces have a surplus value for cities, as they are places for unexpected encounters, public discourse, relaxation and passage. Despite the wide range of beneficiaries, municipalities still often consider them as traditional public goods and bear sole responsibility, yet increasingly lack budgets. Co-production could be a possible solution to share costs, rights and responsibilities, but is often contested due to fear of privatisation and commercialisation. This paper evaluates different forms of co-production of public space in New York City and investigates how they could be translated to the Dutch context, where co-production of public space is still rare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the goals and development of a rural tourism Studio for Masters-level students in the Southern Tier of Western New York over the last decade. The main goal of the Studios has been to explore how tourism may be used to promote general economic development in a relatively impoverished rural area and so help to improve living conditions, including housing. The studio experience is considered to be an important part of the preparation for a career in planning. Studios almost always enter into, and attempt to contribute to, an ongoing planning and development process and are undertaken with the cooperation of local communities and agencies. The paper describes the background of students, their disciplinary skills and work experience, ethnic, age and geographic mix, and general unfamiliarity with rural issues. Also described are the various constraints and compromises with respect to course requirements and schedules, location, local participation and engaging communities. The paper illustrates some of the housing-related findings and recommendationsÐ recreational and second homes, low-income properties, retirement and mobile homesÐ and concludes with an evaluation of the Studio overall including its limitations and suggestions for a continuing "planning-bus" approach to University-community collaboration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the theories and methods involved in the study of the impact of private governance on residents in two distinct kinds of middle class housing schemes: gated community residents in New York and Texas living in single family attached and detached houses, and cooperative apartment dwellers in New York City. The studies employed a range of methodologies drawing on the disciplines of anthropology, psychology and political science. An attempt was made to understand residents lived experiences through a number of disciplinary lenses: theories of community and culture; theories of rationalization and psychological resistance, and theories of moral minimalism and representation. Each of these disciplinary layers added to the analysis, while at the same time, creating epistemological disjunctures and concerns that had to be addressed by the research team on an ongoing basis. The paper concludes with an evaluation of the benefits of this approach in terms of the production of new knowledge about private governance, while offering cautionary comments about undertaking interdisciplinary projects of this nature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research turns the spotlight to the deregulation of once publicly funded affordable housing. Through a microsimulation that follows the conversion from affordable to market-rate units on Roosevelt Island New York, we estimate the expected demographic changes each year between 1976 and 2070. The simulation combines information from the American Community Survey, the island's masterplan, the privatization agreements, and interviews with residents, to produce interactive graphs at three urban scales: the neighborhood, the project, and the building. We found that while the households of market-rate units are gradually becoming younger and more affluent, the households of affordable units are becoming older and more impoverished. Despite an individual agreement for each building, the demographic changes are similar, and that, those changes will affect low-income buildings first. Moreover, upon expiration, 30 percent of the existing protected tenants will be over 65 and at risk of being displaced. The simulation is available at http://ridigitaltwin.pythonanywhere.com/. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many Italian North Americans have two kitchens in their homes: one on the first floor, and a second in the basement. While this set-up is pervasive in cities across North America, homes with two kitchens are uncommon in Italy. This article explores the significance of the basement kitchen in first-generation Italian homes in Canada and the United States. Examining homes of various typologies in and around Toronto, Montreal and New York, purchased by Italian immigrants between 1950 and 1980, this paper argues that for Italian women the basement kitchen is a liberating space, free from the constraints of formality and traditional room divisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Displacement has been at the centre of heated analytical and political debates over gentrification and urban change for almost 40 years. A new generation of quantitative research has provided new evidence of the limited (and sometimes counter-intuitive) extent of displacement, supporting broader theoretical and political arguments favouring mixed-income redevelopment and other forms of gentrification. This paper offers a critical challenge to this interpretation, drawing on evidence from a mixed-methods study of gentrification and displacement in New York City. Quantitative analysis of the New York City Housing and Vacancy Survey indicates that displacement is a limited yet crucial indicator of the deepening class polarisation of urban housing markets; moreover, the main buffers against gentrification-induced displacement of the poor (public housing and rent regulation) are precisely those kinds of market interventions that are being challenged by advocates of gentrification and dismantled by policy-makers. Qualitative analysis based on interviews with community organisers and residents documents the continued political salience of displacement and reveals an increasingly sophisticated and creative array of methods used to resist displacement in a policy climate emphasising selective deregulation and market-oriented social policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Post-COVID, New York City faces reduced demand for commercial space in its central business districts, even as residential demand is resurgent. Just as in past eras of New York’s history, conversion of commercial spaces into housing may help the city adapt to these new market conditions and provide an additional pathway for producing badly needed housing. If 10 percent of office and hotel spaces were converted to residential use, around 75,000 homes would be created, concentrated in Midtown Manhattan. However, there are considerable obstacles to such conversions, including a slew of regulatory barriers. Allowing greater flexibility in building uses—including by reducing the distinction between short- and long-term use and rethinking the separation of uses embedded in the city’s zoning code—could help facilitate these shifts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the characteristics of accessory apartments (rented housing units within owner-occupied single family homes) and the circumstances which give rise to them. Survey data from a New York suburb indicate that these apartments provide inexpensive housing for entry level workers many of whom are related to the home owners. Analyses suggest that ‘empty nest’ households who anticipate a decline in income and live in a house whose structure facilitates a conversion are likely to create accessory apartments in their homes. Some implications of these findings for residential succession in suburban areas are explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Permanent supportive housing (PSH)—subsidized housing paired with support services such as case management—is a key part of national strategic plans to end homelessness. PSH tenants face high overdose risk due to a confluence of individual and environmental risk factors, yet little research has examined overdose prevention in PSH. Methods: We describe the protocol for a hybrid type 3 stepped-wedge cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT) of overdose prevention practice implementation in PSH. We adapted evidence-based overdose prevention practices and implementation strategies for PSH using input from stakeholder focus groups. The trial will include 20 PSH buildings (with building size ranging from 20 to over 150 tenants) across New York City and New York's Capital Region. Buildings will be randomized to one of four 6-month intervention waves during which they will receive a package of implementation support including training in using a PSH Overdose Prevention (POP) Toolkit, time-limited practice facilitation, and learning collaboratives delivered to staff and tenant implementation champions appointed by each building. The primary outcome is building-level fidelity to a defined list of overdose prevention practices. Secondary and exploratory implementation and effectiveness outcomes will be examined using PSH staff and tenant survey questionnaires, and analysis of tenant Medicaid data. We will explore factors related to implementation success, including barriers and facilitators, using qualitative interviews with key stakeholders. The project is being conducted through an academic-community partnership, and an Advisory Board including PSH tenants and other key stakeholders will be engaged in all stages of the project. Discussion: We describe the protocol for a hybrid type 3 stepped-wedge cluster RCT of overdose prevention practice implementation in PSH. This study will be the first controlled trial of overdose prevention implementation in PSH settings. The research will make a significant impact by testing and informing future implementation strategies to prevent overdose for a population at particularly high risk for overdose mortality. Findings from this PSH-focused research are expected to be broadly applicable to other housing settings and settings serving people experiencing homelessness. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT05786222, registered 27 March 2023. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peter Marcuse war ein wichtiger Autor in der internationalen kritischen Stadt- und Wohnforschung. Seine Arbeiten, u. a. zu Gentrifizierung und Wohnungspolitik, boten immer wieder Anknüpfungspunkte auch für soziale städtische Bewegungen in New York, Berlin und anderen Städten. Anlässlich seines Todes im März 2022 diskutieren vier renommierte Wissenschaftler:innen über sein Werk und dessen Bedeutung für ihr eigenes Schaffen und für aktuelle Kämpfe für ein Recht auf Stadt und ein Recht auf Wohnen. Peter Marcuse was an important author in international critical urban and housing research. His works, among others on gentrification and housing policy, repeatedly offered points of departure for social urban movements in New York, Berlin and other cities. On the occasion of his death in March 2022, four renowned scholars discuss his work and its significance for their own thinking and for current struggles for a right to the city and a right to housing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined socioeconomic, academic, and health-related factors associated with respondent reports that childcare interfered with academics. 176 undergraduate student parents We administered a cross-sectional survey to a representative sample of students at a public university in New York City. Using a sub-set of those who reported being parents/guardians (n = 176), we conducted bivariate analyses to assess factors associated with childcare problems interfering with school. About 30% of the sample reported that childcare interfered with school somewhat/moderately/a lot in the last year. Compared to those with no/little perceived interference, they were significantly more likely to need mental health treatment (30% vs. 13%; p < 0.01), worry that they would run out of food sometimes/often (32% vs. 16%; p < 0.01), and experience housing problems (26% vs. 9%; p < 0.01). Offering mental healthcare and services addressing food and housing insecurity can help college students to navigate challenges inherent to being a student parent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smoke-free housing policies are intended to reduce the deleterious health effects of secondhand smoke exposure, but there is limited evidence regarding their health impacts. We examined associations between implementation of a federal smoke-free housing rule by the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) and pediatric Medicaid claims for asthma, lower respiratory tract infections, and upper respiratory tract infections in the early post–policy intervention period. We used geocoded address data to match children living in tax lots with NYCHA buildings (exposed to the policy) to children living in lots with other subsidized housing (unexposed to the policy). We constructed longitudinal difference-in-differences models to assess relative changes in monthly rates of claims between November 1, 2015, and December 31, 2019 (the policy was introduced on July 30, 2018). We also examined effect modification by baseline age group (≤2, 3–6, or 7–15 years). In New York City, introduction of a smoke-free policy was not associated with lower rates of Medicaid claims for any outcomes in the early postpolicy period. Exposure to the smoke-free policy was associated with slightly higher than expected rates of outpatient upper respiratory tract infection claims (incidence rate ratio = 1.05, 95% confidence interval: 1.01, 1.08), a result most pronounced among children aged 3–6 years. Ongoing monitoring is essential to understanding long-term health impacts of smoke-free housing policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Housing affordability is the main policy challenge for most large cities in the world. Zoning changes, rent control, housing vouchers, and tax credits are the main levers employed by policymakers. How effective are they at combatting the affordability crisis? We build a dynamic stochastic spatial equilibrium model to evaluate the effect of these policies on the well-being of its citizens. The model endogenizes house prices, rents, construction, labour supply, output, income, and wealth inequality, the location decisions of households within the city as well as inter-city migration. Its main novel features are risk, risk aversion, and incomplete risk-sharing. We calibrate the model to the New York metropolitan statistical area. Housing affordability policies carry substantial insurance value but affect aggregate housing and labour supply and cause misallocation in labour and housing markets. Housing affordability policies that enhance access to this insurance especially for the neediest households create substantial net welfare gains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Current Sociology is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction: In July 2018, a new federal mandate by the Department of Housing and Urban Development went into effect requiring all US public housing authorities to implement policies banning smoking in living units, indoor common areas, administrative buildings, and outdoor areas within 25 feet of these buildings. Although some housing authorities had smoke-free policies in place for decades, others had to implement them for the first time. Housing authorities continue to face challenges in ensuring compliance with these policies, and resident perspectives can greatly inform measures to promote adherence.Aims and Methods: We conducted in-person interviews with 20 New York City Housing Authority tenants in April 2018. Our thematic analysis examined resident opinions on the upcoming smoke-free housing policy.Results: Although 65% of residents supported the policy, 50% anticipated poor adherence due to expected lack of enforcement, safety issues with smoking outdoors, and general discontent with the housing authority and living conditions. However, many participants felt adherence could be improved if the housing authority optimized resource-provision and communication with tenants.Conclusions: Our study adds to existing literature examining tenant views on the controversial topic of mandatory smoke-free housing policies, and our interviews were conducted at a unique time prior to policy implementation in the country's largest public housing authority. Based on our results, we provide recommendations for housing authorities including: (1) information and resource-provision, (2) safety enhancement, and (3) relationship building with tenants in order to maximize policy adherence.Implications: Our study is unique because we captured resident views prior to policy implementation in a housing authority without a preexisting smoke-free policy in place. In comparison, most recent research on this topic has focused on the postimplementation period or used survey research methods in the preimplementation phase. Our findings add to extant research about tenant perspectives on smoke-free housing policies and offer suggestions to address barriers to compliance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Courts in the neighboring states of New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania have taken divergent approaches to local exclusionary zoning, which entails land use regulations restricting the development of housing affordable to low- and moderate-income households. Using difference-in-differences regression models, we assess whether this variation has affected the availability of townhome and apartment units. We also validate the use of unit type as a proxy for occupant income. We find that New Jersey's approach was associated with increases in the stock of townhome and apartment units relative to suburban jurisdictions in New York State, but not Pennsylvania. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Rates of participation in HIV care, medication uptake, and viral suppression are improving among persons living with HIV (PLWH) in the United States. Yet, disparities among African American/Black and Latino PLWH are persistent, signaling the need for new conceptual approaches. To address gaps in services and research (e.g., insufficient attention to structural/systemic factors, inadequate harm reduction services and autonomy support) and improve behavioral interventions, we integrated critical race theory, harm reduction, and self-determination theory into a new conceptual model, then used the model to develop a set of six intervention components which were tested in a larger study. The present qualitative study explores participants' perspectives on the study's acceptability, feasibility, and impact, and the conceptual model's contribution to these experiences. Methods: Participants in the larger study were African American/Black and Latino PLWH poorly engaged in HIV care and with non-suppressed HIV viral load in New York City (N = 512). We randomly selected N = 46 for in-depth semi-structured interviews on their experiences with and perspectives on the study. Interviews were audio-recorded and professionally transcribed verbatim, and data were analyzed using directed qualitative content analysis. Results: On average, participants were 49 years old (SD = 9) and had lived with HIV for 19 years (SD = 7). Most were male (78%) and African American/Black (76%). All had taken HIV medication previously. Challenging life contexts were the norm, including poverty, poor quality/unstable housing, trauma histories exacerbated by current trauma, health comorbidities, and substance use. Participants found the study highly acceptable. We organized results into four themes focused on participants' experiences of: 1) being understood as a whole person and in their structural/systemic context; 2) trustworthiness and trust; 3) opportunities for self-reflection; and 4) support of personal autonomy. The salience of nonjudgment was prominent in each theme. Themes reflected grounding in the conceptual model. Participants reported these characteristics were lacking in HIV care settings. Conclusions: The new conceptual model emphasizes the salience of systemic/structural and social factors that drive health behavior and the resultant interventions foster trust, self-reflection, engagement, and behavior change. The model has potential to enhance intervention acceptability, feasibility, and effectiveness with African American/Black and Latino PLWH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although pregnancy and the first year of life are sensitive windows for child development, we know very little about the lived experiences of mothers living in poverty or near poverty during the perinatal period; specifically, how they perceive and use public resources to support themselves and their newborn. In this qualitative study, we explore how predominantly Black and Latinx mothers with infants living in or near poverty and engaged in public assistance manage to meet their family's needs with available resources from safety net programs and social supports. We conducted 20 qualitative interviews with mothers living in (85%) or near poverty in New York City (NYC). All participants (mean age = 24) had an 11-month-old infant at the time of the interview. Using thematic analysis, we identified five main themes reflecting how mothers experience and navigate living with very low incomes while engaging in public assistance programs: (1) experiencing cascading effects of hardships during pregnancy, (2) relying on food assistance and informal supports amid scarcity, (3) waiting for limited affordable housing: 'life on hold', (4) finding pathways towards stability after the baby's birth, (5) making it work: efforts to look forward. Results describe how the current focus on "work first" of existing federal and state policies adds a layer of stress and burden on the lives of single mothers experiencing low incomes and entangled hardships during pregnancy and after birth. We document how mothers experience coverage gaps and implementation challenges navigating the patchwork of public assistance programs, yet how the support of flexible caseworkers accessing, using, and coordinating assistance has the potential to help mothers plan for longer-term goals. Highlights: Mothers with low incomes experience multiple needs regarding income, housing, and childcare despite existing safety net programs. Mothers find strength through their relationships with their children and the support encountered and mobilized from the community and family. Safety net programs may not always be sufficient for mothers with low incomes in the first year after giving birth. Safety net programs must review coverage gaps, implementation challenges, and work requirements for mothers of infants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers some perspectives concerning the centrality of food for the way Dominican immigrants in New York City negotiate the micro-politics of place and community. It examines how immigrants navigate the urban spaces through food routes, form new social networks and re-imagine places of home in a new society. Using the concept of "Afro-diasporic seasonings" is a way to point to the struggles, movements, and wider contexts of memory-history that made possible the present relations between these people, foods and places. This exploration is approached from three angles. First, I share some findings about how Dominican immigrants season their foods and lives in New York City Second, I discuss place-seasonings, or how the process of finding housing has a tremendous impact on self-making and community formation. Third, I contextualize Dominican migrants' food practices within Afro-diasporic trajectories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The capitalization of urban property markets intensifies the contradictions between housing as use-value affordability versus exchange-value asset accumulation, and exacerbates displacement pressures. Policies designed to deal with these contradictions-public housing and rent regulations- allow some low-income renters to resist displacement, particularly in gentrifying neighborhoods. Unfortunately, the resulting empirical configuration has been interpreted in ways that cast doubt on the extent of displacement, its causal links to gentrification, and the necessity of protective policies. In this paper we present an alternative interpretation, using New York City as a case study to analyze the spatial evolution of displacement pressures amidst the restructuring of an embattled yet vital municipal welfare state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beyond her well-known writings against urban renewal, Jane Jacobs guided the design and implementation of a pair of housing projects while she was a resident of New York in the 1960s and then Toronto in the 1970s. These two firsthand attempts to apply Jacobs's influential ideas on urbanism not only demonstrate her skills as a political activist but also illustrate how some Canadians forged powerful new urban coalitions just as U.S. city politics was becoming increasingly fragmented and incapacitated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Asthma is now the leading cause of emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and missed school days in New York City''s poorest neighbourhoods. While most research focuses on the influence of the indoor environment on asthma, this study examines the neighbourhood effects on childhood asthma, such as housing and ambient environmental hazards. Using Geographic Information Science (GIScience) we identify neighbourhoods with elevated concentrations of childhood asthma hospitalizations between 1997 and 2000 in US census tracts, analyze the sociodemographic, housing characteristics, and air pollution burdens from stationary, land use and mobile sources in these areas. The paper reveals the importance of distinguishing the specific and often different combinations of poor housing conditions, outdoor air pollution and noxious land uses that contribute to the high incidence of asthma in impoverished urban neighbourhoods. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The 1990s witnessed significant changes in home ownership policy that were designed to reduce disparities in home ownership rates between whites and non-whites. The study finds evidence that the policies were, indeed, effective in reducing home ownership disparities between whites and non-whites. In this study data from the New York City Housing and Vacancy Survey (NYCHVS) are used to examine ethnic/racial home ownership rate disparities. Decompositions are performed to determine the component of home ownership rate differentials due to ethnic/racial group characteristics versus ability to translate those characteristics into home ownership. Presumably, a shift in public policy to be more ethnically and racially inclusive should reflect a change in home ownership rate disparities and, more particularly, a change in the component of those disparities attributed to differential ability to translate group characteristics into home ownership rates. Hence, this study addresses the success of recent policies to foster the opportunity of achieving the 'American dream' for non-white families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the association between nativity status (U.S.- vs foreignborn) and viral suppression among women of color (WOC) with HIV (HIV +) and whether this association was modified by education and housing. Methods: Data were from 549 HIV + WOC, who participated in the Health Resources and Services Administration-funded WOC Initiative 2009–2013. We used generalized estimating equation models to quantify the association between the respondents' nativity status and viral suppression. Results: After adjusting for covariates, foreign-born WOC were 2.2 times (95% confidence interval: 1.25, 3.85) more likely to achieve viral suppression than U.S.-born WOC. This association was not modified by education or housing status. Conclusions: Despite facing barriers to care, foreign-born WOC were more likely to achieve viral suppression than U.S.-born WOC. Programs aiming to end the HIV epidemic and reduce HIV disparities in the U.S. should consider these findings as they provide a more nuanced understanding of HIV + WOC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Social & Cultural Geography is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Immigrant African gay and bisexual men (GBM) are at risk for substance use and adverse mental health outcomes due to negative experiences in home and host countries. Little is known about correlates of substance use and mental health outcomes in this population. We explored pre- and post-migratory factors associated with substance use and depression in recently migrated African GBM. Participants (N = 70) were recruited between July and November 2015 in NYC. Eligible participants were administered a structured questionnaire. Correlates of substance use and depression were identified using bivariate and multivariable analyses. Factors independently associated with current substance use were age, openness about sexual orientation, homophobic experiences in home country, forced sex in home country, current housing instability, and internalized homophobia. Factors independently associated with depression were post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms and alcohol use. Substance use and depression were associated with negative experiences in home and host country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Persons with HIV who are receiving housing services often have high rates of engagement in care, yet many are not virally suppressed. We linked data from the New York City Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program to electronically reported laboratory tests from the HIV surveillance registry to examine factors associated with a lack of viral suppression. Of 1491 HOPWA consumers, 523 (35.1%) were not durably suppressed, and 253 (17.0%) were unsuppressed at their last viral load test. Substance use, age < 27 years, and emergency housing all independently predicted lack of durable viral suppression and lack of viral suppression at last viral load test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reproductive desires of HIV-positive men have been investigated far less than those of HIV-positive women, especially in the US. This qualitative study of a sample of 94 HIV-positive men in New York City who were in a relationship with a woman of reproductive age examined their reasons for wanting a child as well as the conditions under which they would feel ready to attempt conception. Participants felt a child would make them feel normal, give meaning to their lives, or make others in their life happy. Although they reported HIV-related concerns (i.e., horizontal or vertical transmission, reinfection, or shortened life expectancy), participants mostly discussed factors unrelated to HIV (e.g., finances, housing, incarceration, substance abuse, or relationships) as deterrents to acting on their desire to having a child. When providing information on safer conception, healthcare providers should be aware of the broad desires and factors informing HIV-positive men’s reproductive goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study of low-income Hispanic/Latino adults living in 291 individual apartments in the Bronx, New York, the apartment layout was significantly associated with the odds of depressive symptomology. Women living in apartments in which the most central rooms were the living, dining, or kitchen (i.e., rooms commonly used for communal activities) were less likely to have depressive symptomology (OR = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.22-0.86) than women in apartments where the central rooms were lobbies or corridors, adjusting for demographics, health conditions, and housing and neighborhood characteristics. No statistically significant association was observed in men. We present the logic underlying the use of layout variables in this study and discuss the implications it may have for understanding the role of the home environment on psychological distress among inhabitants. The results of this study show how space syntax analysis can be used to better understanding disparities in the risk of depression and offer an additional opportunity for public health stakeholders to identify those most at risk for depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New York City faces the challenge of an ever-increasing homeless population with almost 60,000 people currently living in city shelters. In 2015, approximately 25% of families stayed longer than nine months in a shelter, and 17% of families with children that exited a homeless shelter returned to the shelter system within 30 days of leaving. This suggests that “long-term” shelter residents and those that re-enter shelters contribute significantly to the rise of the homeless population living in city shelters and indicate systemic challenges to finding adequate permanent housing. This article focuses on our preliminary work with Win (Women-in-Need) shelters to understand the factors that predict readmission and length-of-stay of homeless families. We create a unified, comprehensive database of the homeless population being served by Win shelters, accounting for more than 6,000 homeless families. We apply logistic regression models and an unsupervised clustering algorithm to identify predictors of re-entry and long-term length-of-stay. Citizenship, age, medical conditions, employment, and history of foster care or shelter stays as a child are found to be significant predictors. The results of the K-means clustering identify three primary groups, consistent with previous typologies characterized by transitionally homeless, episodically homeless, and chronically homeless. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A cohort of frequently incarcerated individuals in the New York City jail system was identified through "hot spotting" analysis. This group demonstrated higher levels of substance use, mental illness, and homelessness than the general jail population, and was typically incarcerated on minor criminal charges. To understand this population better, in- depth interviews (n = 20) were conducted at three Rikers Island correctional facilities with people who had entered the jail system at least 18 times in a six- year period. Findings showed that life circumstances, chronic homelessness, mental illness, and substance use resulted in repeated institutionalization across multiple settings. Participants described an "institutional circuit" that promoted a state of permanent instability characterized by rotating involvement with custodial institutions. Exiting the institutional circuit requires the ability to navigate complex bureaucratic systems; however, without structural reorganization in social service delivery and an emphasis on permanent housing, participants in this group are unlikely to break the cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1970s New York, landlords and major real estate associations argued that New York could stem the exodus of middle-income residents by creating greater opportunities for homeownership in a city that had long been dominated overwhelmingly by renters. They proposed converting middle-income rental housing into cooperatives, a process that would also enable former landlords to profit handsomely. Tenants, however, widely rejected apartment ownership, preferring the security of rent-regulated housing. This article traces the ensuing struggles between tenants, the real estate industry, and city officials over the nature of moderate- and middle-income housing in New York. The eventual success of the real estate industry enabled cooperative conversions to expand dramatically in the 1980s, but only by bargaining with tenants and activists, offering tenants noneviction plans, and discounting prices. This process helped to transform the city by underwriting a momentous turnaround in the real estate market, while signaling a larger embrace of market deregulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence on ethnic enclave-health associations for Asian Americans is limited due to an inconsistent definition of ethnic enclave. The authors aimed to establish a robust criterion for defining Asian enclaves in New York City (NYC) and assessed the association between enclave residence and health outcomes among Asian American adults. Data came from 2009-2012 NYC Community Health Surveys and 2008-2012 American Community Survey. Asian enclave was defined as an area with high dissimilarity and isolation scores as well as high concentration of Asians. Five of 55 NYC community districts were identified as Asian enclaves. After controlling for confounding, enclave residence was associated with positive perception of general health with borderline significance (prevalence ratio = 1.06, 95 % CI 0.98, 1.15), but not with current smoking, hypertension, and diabetes. Ethnic enclave residence in urban areas may not produce a substantial impact on chronic health outcomes for Asian Americans beyond individual-level factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban scholars frequently call for equitable and inclusive growth to create more just cities but this vision has proven elusive in urban development -- especially involving low-income communities and affordable housing. In 2013, the New York City Housing Authority proposed to leverage private development to benefit low-income residents by supporting market-rate residential construction on open space in public housing sites to pay for needed improvements to subsidised units. The Land Lease Initiative was a seemingly win-win plan but quickly faced backlash from multiple quarters. Using interviews with key housing authority officials and analysis of plan documents and media coverage, we show how the content and framing of the plan stoked fears of displacement, despite stated intentions. Our analysis reveals that criticism overlooked four unconventional ideas for preserving public housing, which are embedded in the plan: (1) retaining all public housing units and high-rise public housing towers on site, as opposed to demolishing them; (2) deconcentrating poverty by increasing residential density, instead of displacing poor residents; (3) adding affordable housing units to the site of low-income public housing; and (4) creating mixed-income communities around buildings, in addition to within them. The findings suggest that the future of affordable housing in the neoliberal era involves blurring the line between preservation and privatisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to understand participant priorities in their personal recovery journey and their perspectives of recovery domains. A card-sort data-gathering technique was employed to elicit priorities in recovery from consumers in supportive housing programs serving adults who were formerly homeless with severe mental illnesses in New York City. Participants (N = 38) were asked to sort 12 cards printed with recovery domains in order of importance and describe the meaning attached to each domain. Mental health (95%), physical health (89%), and housing (92%) were the domains most frequently included and prioritized in the top three rankings. Family (76%) and partner (74%) were also frequently included and endorsed as most important second only to mental health. Housing was prioritized yet rated most important less often (58%). Work, school, hobbies, program, friends, and neighborhood were less frequently endorsed. “Card-sort talk” revealed critical understanding of participants’ priorities and their reasons for endorsing other domains less frequently. Most important to participants was regaining functional independence through improved mental and physical health and access to housing. With underlying principles of efficiency and empowerment, card sort is a promising engagement technique for providers to elicit consumer priorities in their own recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While public programmes, rent controls and subsidy schemes have not resolved New York’s historic and long-standing housing crisis, they have been important in dampening the housing problems of low-income New Yorkers. Along with an encroaching neo-liberal hegemony, however, since the 1990s redistributive policies have come under growing pressure. This article focuses on the neo-liberal restructuring of the city’s rental market and the effects on housing affordability. First, we outline the most crucial reforms and policy changes, at various scales, that have impacted the rental market in recent decades. Second, we demonstrate, using survey data, how reforms have affected the rental market structure before assessing how supply changes have affected affordability. We find that policy reforms have led to a reduction in inexpensive rental units in the city, reshaping patterns of affordability among different income groups, with particularly negative outcomes for low-income households, specifically among Black and Minority Ethnic Groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Successful strategies for homelessness prevention must efficiently target people at greatest risk for experiencing homelessness. We developed a model to target homelessness prevention services to individuals and evaluate its results compared to a similar model we developed for families.We tracked 10,220 individuals who applied for community-based homelessness prevention in New York City from 2004 to 2010 using Cox regression to predict shelter entry over the next 2-8 years. Both the comprehensive model and a brief screening model based on seven variables are at least as efficient as worker judgments, increasing correct predictions by 77 percent and reducing unidentified cases of subsequent homelessness by 85 percent. Risk factors for homeless individuals were mostly a subset of risk factors for families. The evidence suggests that, despite limitations, empirical models increase the efficiency of prevention services for individuals. Investigators in other cities may improve the efficiency of local prevention programs with empirical targeting models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]