• Reports

Rental Housing Needs Assessment

May 2023

CLICK HERE TO VIEW REPORT

A city’s housing market is a result of a confluence of factors: regional economic opportunity, existing housing supply, migration patterns, historic inequities, macroeconomic trends, and household preferences, among others. Addressing housing goals can mean different things for different residents: building affordable housing, preventing displacement, creating homeownership opportunities, or repairing dilapidated housing stock.

In Dallas, addressing the needs of renters, who often face higher poverty rates and cost burdens, is crucial to foster a more equitable and inclusive community. Prioritizing affordable rental options can support lower-income households, essential workers, and homelessness prevention. This report focuses on the rental housing needs for the City of Dallas’ residents, with an emphasis on low-income households.

Homeownership opportunities and rental affordability are often linked—in Dallas, trends suggest that moderate and high-income renters who are unable to afford homes are bidding up rents for lower-income residents. Homeownership can be an important wealth-building tool and long-term stabilizer for families. Subsequent CPAL projects will significantly focus on homeownership opportunities.

View more

  • WIC Playbook

    CPAL’s WIC playbook features prototypes designed to increase WIC benefit uptake in Dallas through human-centered design.

    • The WIC program plays an important role in improving birth outcomes and containing health care costs. Every dollar spent on WIC leads to savings in health care costs from $1.77 to $3.13 within the first 60 days after birth.
    • National data shows that in 2021, an average of 12.13 million moms, babies, and young children were eligible for WIC but only 51% actually participated.
    View Report

  • Improve Housing Choice Voucher Acceptance

    CPAL’s Housing Voucher Acceptance Guide explains Dallas’ voucher ecosystem dynamics and ways to improve HCV acceptance.

    • In a 2020 survey of apartment complexes across Dallas, Denton, Tarrant, and Collin Counties conducted by the Inclusive Communities Project, only 7% of respondents reported accepting vouchers.
    • Those that benefit most from vouchers are primarily women and BIPOC renters who live below the federal poverty threshold. 15% of the DHA Housing Choice Voucher recipients (~2,400 families) are households with dependent children.
    View Report

  • Eviction at Dallas College

    Analysis from CPAL and Dallas College explores how eviction affects Dallas College students and opportunities for support.

    • Housing providers filed 4,114 evictions against 3,352 Dallas College students from 2017 to spring 2022. For students with an eviction filing while enrolled at Dallas College, just 4% went on to earn a credential.
    • Black students, students with children, female students, and American Indian/Alaskan Native students are overrepresented in the subset of students with an eviction filing.
    View Report