For 2020, the authors of the Greater Boston Housing Report Card set aside the annual report format to instead create a series of reports that examine the challenges and opportunities facing Greater Boston residents, landlords, developers and nonprofits, triggered by the outbreak of COVID-19. The series format allows the research partners to explore issues in near-real time, and by using an interactive format, makes it possible for the partners to update data as needed.
Beginning in June, the partners committed to producing a series of at least three reports under the auspices of the Greater Boston Housing Report Card. You can access those reports here. In addition, we are sharing housing-related research from the Boston Foundation and other partners.
On June 23, 2020, the first report release in the 2020 Greater Boston Housing Report Card series examined households’ ability to pay rents and mortgages, the prospects facing lower-income households at the end of the eviction and foreclosure moratorium, and some innovative responses from municipalities.
On July 14, 2020, the second installment in the series looked at the correlation between the place and the COVID-19 outbreak, exploring data that show connections between housing affordability, accessibility, and crowding as a possible factors in COVID's uneven spread across communities.
On September 23, we continued the 2020 webinar series with an examination of how the overall economic impact of COVID has affected an already difficult housing market for renters and homeowners. After a data presentation by Alicia Sasser Modestino, a panel discussed the statewide challenges and opportunities for needed reforms to improve equitable access and affordability.
