# Vermont

### Summary

Vermont state is facing an acute affordable housing crisis. For every 100 low-income renter households, there are 52 units available that are affordable to them. The median rent in the state has risen by 34% since 2010, while median household incomes have grown by 35%. Currently, the state is short over 8,920 low-income housing units, meaning rental units that are affordable to households earning ≤60% of AMI.

- **27.9%** share of renter households  
- **40.8%** share of low-income households  
- **46.7%** share of rent-burdened households

### Renter population data

**Renters vs homeowners**
| Households                | % share  |
|--------------------------|----------|
| Renter households        | 73,362   | 27.9%|
| Homeowner households     | 189,152  | 72.1%|
| Total households         | 262,514  | 100.0%|

**Low-income renter households**
| Renter households by income group | Households | % share |
|-----------------------------------|------------|---------|
| Extremely low-income (≤30% AMI)   | 9,127      | 12.4%   |
| Very low-income (31-50% AMI)     | 9,565      | 13.0%   |
| Low-income (51-80% AMI)           | 11,205     | 15.3%   |
| All low-income households (<80% AMI) | 29,897 | 40.8%   |

**Rent-burdened households**
| Share of income spent on rent | Households | % share |
|-------------------------------|------------|---------|
| Moderately rent-burdened      | 17,487     | 23.8%   |
| 30.0–34.9%                   | 6,891      | 9.4%    |
| 35.0–39.9%                   | 4,949      | 6.7%    |
| 40.0-49.9%                   | 5,647      | 7.7%    |
| Severely rent-burdened       | 16,737     | 22.8%   |
| ≥50.0%                        | 16,737     | 22.8%   |
| All rent-burdened households  | 34,224     | 46.7%   |

### Affordable housing shortage

**Rent vs median household income**  
| Median household income | Amount ($)  |
|------------------------|--------------|
| in 2010                | 29,580       |
| in 2021                | 39,931       |
| Increase (2010–2021)   | 35.0%        |

**Median rent**  
| Median rent           | Amount ($)  |
|----------------------|--------------|
| in 2010              | 697          |
| in 2021              | 932          |
| Increase (2010–2021) | 33.7%        |

**Affordable housing stock**
| Supply, demand & shortage | Units    |
|--------------------------|----------|
| Supply (current stock)   | 9,772    |
| Demand (total units needed)| 18,692  |
| Shortage                 | 8,920    |

**Availability of affordable rental units per 100 household**  
| Income Level            | Units per 100  |
|---------------------|------------------|
| Moderate, middle & upper-income (>80% AMI) | 107                |
| Low-income (51-80% AMI) | 149                |
| Very low-income (31-50% AMI) | 55                 |
| Extremely low-income (≤30% AMI) | 49                 |

### Finance institutions

#### Vermont Housing Finance Agency

**Address:** 164 Saint Paul Street, Burlington, VT 05401-4634

**List of loan programs**  
- [Missing Middle Program](https://www.vhfa.org/rentalhousing/developers/missing-middle-homeownership-program)  
- [Tax Credit Program](https://www.vhfa.org/rentalhousing/developers)  
- [Predevelopment Loans](https://www.vhfa.org/rentalhousing/loan-programs/pre-development)  
- [Construction & Permanent Loan Programs](https://www.vhfa.org/rentalhousing/construction-permanent-loans)  
- [Housing Investment Fund](https://www.vhfa.org/rentalhousing/developers/vhif)

### QAP document (Qualified Allocation Plan)

The QAP is a document that states, and a few local agencies, must develop in order to distribute federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTCs), which can be awarded only to a building that fits the QAP’s priorities and criteria. Each QAP must spell out a housing finance agency’s (HFA’s) priorities and specify the criteria it will use to select projects competing for tax credits. The priorities must be appropriate to local conditions.

#### Housing news

1. **September 19, 2024 - Fast Company**  
   **How Fed Rate Cuts Impact the Housing Market**  
   The Federal Reserve’s recent rate cuts will influence the housing market, but the effects won't be immediate.  
  - **Lower Mortgage Rates**: Fed rate cuts have reduced the average 30-year mortgage rate, which dropped from a peak of 7.79% in late 2023 to around 6.2%.  
  - **Home Sales**: More homeowners might be encouraged to sell.  
  - **Ongoing Supply Issues:** Housing supply shortages will persist despite lower rates.

2. **June 26, 2024 - New York Post**  
   **Housing market won’t come ‘unstuck’ until 2026, economists predict — here’s why**  
   The US housing market won't recover until at least 2026 due to continued demand and high interest rates.

3. **May 15, 2024 - US News**  
   **States With the Largest Homeless Populations**  
   In 2023, the number of homeless individuals in the U.S. reached approximately 653,000, a 12% increase compared to 2020.

4. **June 11, 2024 - NBC News**  
   **The homebuying affordability gap is widening across the country, creating 'an impossible market'**  
   The affordability crisis is highlighted by the gap between median home prices and what the average household can afford.

5. **July 15, 2024 - The Washington Post**  
   **Homelessness, already at a record high last year, appears to be worsening among workers**  
   Rising costs are forcing employed individuals into homelessness due to high rents.