Role of Affordable Housing in Promoting Food Security
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Role of Affordable Housing in Promoting Food Security
Food security involves access to sufficient food that always meets dietary needs for a healthy life. Food insecurity has direct consequences on the health of individuals, such as a lack of adequate nutrients to promote growth. People living in food deserts experience limited access to healthy dishes, prompted by inadequate incomes and restricted availability and affordability of foods. MacNeill et al.’s (2017) study interviewed 42 participants from Black- and Latino-dominated regions. These geographical regions are characterized by a poverty rate greater than 20%, and where people live far from a large store by one mile. Despite food deserts being located further away from supermarkets, the neighborhoods contained many small and convenient food stores. Of the 42 interviewed families, the researchers also found out that the food environment interacted with household preferences and resources, shaping their food shopping decisions (MacNell et al., 2017, p 379). Inadequate food alternatives in America have contributed to health issues in low-income and minority communities. Diet-related complications are severe in food deserts since these communities face obstacles to food access, such as a lack of transportation. Accordingly, research studies suggest that 28% of US households are cost-burdened by spending more than 50% annual salary on housing costs. Families have fewer finances to cater to other basic needs like access to healthy dishes, leading to food insecurity (Devereux et al., 2020). Also, the aspects of the crime affect houses prices, which impacts food security. Researchers suggest that property and violent crimes affect house value, influencing house affordability. This study explores the impact of housing and house affordability on food security. Providing affordable housing helps promote food security and the health of individuals living in food deserts.
Methodology
Housing is a significant concern in the community in that it contributes to various health outcomes. Affordable housing helps people to access a food environment with healthy food types. Therefore, housing affordability plays a significant role in helping people to access food varieties that promote healthy living. Mehdipanah (2020) defines housing affordability as a case where a household spends no more than 30% income on housing costs. The researcher suggests that some homes are cost-burdened and risk being displaced. This instability affects housing affordability, leaving the households with fewer finances to cater to other needs (Mehdipanah, 2020). Low-income and minority communities lack adequate food to meet their nutritional deficiencies due to housing affordability concerns. Spending more money on housing needs, such as lack of rent and electricity, results in families having inadequate dietary food. In another study, the researcher explores the issue of quality affordable housing in New York and recommends policies to promote affordability (McDonough, 2003). The researchers identify that housing voucher programs help revitalize distressed housing by targeting resources to needy recipients. Supply-oriented programs and subsidies help households overcome housing challenges (McDonough, 2003). Affordable housing promotes that families spend less than 30% on housing costs, and when affected, families would lack adequate funds to spend on food. Grants and policies help to promote housing affordability, enabling low-income communities to overcome food insecurity.
Green affordable housing also helps to promote environmental stewardship, that in turn helps to foster food security. Developing buildings where owners enjoy positive environmental impacts help to lower the cost burdens. Green affordable housing allows households to spend the minimum percentage of their salaries on house costs, providing more finances to promote healthy eating. Jeddi Yeganeh et al. (2019) suggested that 47% of tenants in the USA spent more than 30% of their income on housing costs. Besides large metropolitan areas having rising housing prices, most of the energy consumed is produced from non-renewable sources. The reliance on non-renewable energy causes minority families to incur more costs, hindering food security (Jeddi Yeganeh et al., 2019). The study also investigates the benefits and implications of integrating green and affordable housing to improve energy and water conservation. Adopting green housing units is socially beneficial because low-income and minority communities attain housing affordability and promote healthy living through food security. Society enjoys the positive environmental impacts and uses the available resources to advance food security. Rice’s (2021) study suggests that the housing and housing affordability aspect is a crucial determinant of health. The authors suggest that low-earning families experience hardships that make them vulnerable to losing their homes or having inadequate housing. Low-income Black and Hispanic Americans are food insecure compared to the general population, and house affordability burdens them (Rice, 2021, p 167). Inadequate housing and housing conditions limit most of the residents in these deserts from accessing healthy foods. Green affordable housing plays an essential role in promoting food security since it helps people promote environmentally friendly practices that enable them to access healthy foods.
The crime aspect is another effect that causes households to lack sufficient food to meet their nutritional needs. Researchers suggest that property taxes, air pollution, and crime attributes are capitalized into house prices (Lynch & Rasmussen, 2001). Researchers suggest that the cost of crimes is used to compare public safety within jurisdictions in that it affects the price of a house sold. Property crimes and violent crimes reduce house value, hindering affordable housing and food security (Lynch & Rasmussen, 2001). Crimes such as murder, rape, and burglary are significant examples of violent crimes which harm house value and price. According to Lynch and Rasmussen (2001, p 1985), houses in areas with high violent crimes have lower values than houses associated with property crime. Property crimes target property, such as forced entry into a building, car theft, and other non-violent offenses. The study highlights that a 10% increase in violent crime costs lower the sales price by $200, and a similar charge in property crime reduces the predicted sales price by $145 (Lynch & Rasmussen, 2001, p 1977). Violent crimes are common in low-income and minority communities, which harms house values. Homeowners experience difficulties navigating through affordable housing in these areas, leaving them at risk of food insecurity. Property and violent crimes impact affordable housing by causing the house values to increase or decrease. High values hinder house affordability, which then affects food security. Violent communities, characterized by low-earning households, have poor housing affordability and low access to healthy foods.
Conclusion
Housing and housing affordability play a crucial role in determining food security and healthy living for households living in food swamps. Providing affordable housing helps promote food security and the health of individuals living in food deserts. Housing affordability refers to housing for which the occupant pays no more than 30% of their income for gross housing costs. Affordable housing helps people to access a food environment with healthy food types. Therefore, housing affordability plays a significant role in helping people to access food varieties that promote healthy living. Green affordable housing also helps to promote environmental stewardship, that in turn helps to foster food security. Specifically, it allows people to promote environmentally friendly practices that help access healthy foods. Property crimes and violent crimes reduce house value, hindering affordable housing and food security. Violent crimes are common in low-earning lead to housing concerns and unhealthy food.
References
Devereux, S., Béné, C., & Hoddinott, J. (2020). Conceptualising COVID-19’s impacts on household food security.
Jeddi Yeganeh, A., McCoy, A. P., & Hankey, S. (2019). Green affordable housing: Cost-benefit analysis for zoning incentives.
Lynch, A. K., & Rasmussen, D. W. (2001). Measuring the impact of crime on house prices.m
MacNell, L., Elliott, S., Hardison-Moody, A., & Bowen, S. (2017). Black and Latino urban food desert residents’ perceptions of their food environment and factors that influence food shopping decisions.
McDonough, J. M. (2003). Policies to Promote Affordable Housing.
Mehdipanah, R. (2020). Housing as a Determinant of COVID-19 Inequities.
Rice, G. (2021). COVID-19 & Food Insecurity: How the COVID-19 Pandemic Has Exacerbated Food Insecurity and Will Disproportionally Affect Low Income and Minority Groups.
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