Benefits of Affordable Housing
Affordable housing refers to cost effective dwellings that can be afforded by people with low or modest incomes. When affordable housing is well managed and developed, it can provide quite a number of benefits. Further down are some major benefits of affordable housing to the residents, community as well as developers.
1. Economic benefits to the community
Affordable housing provides direct economic advantages to the immediate community. Since the houses are affordable, the people are going to have extra money to spend. This is going to lead to an increase in the demand of various services and goods leading to increased employment opportunities.
2. Provides a diverse workforce
The best thing about affordable housing is the fact that it accommodates individuals with different skills that are beneficial to the community. For instance, construction workers, bus drivers, cleaners, shop assistants, teachers and nurses are well catered for under affordable housing and thus they can provide their important services to the community.
3. Promotes social and economic integration
Affordable housing ensures that the cost of housing is not very high such that families can afford to meet their respective health and education costs. This is also beneficial as it provides an adequate security of tenure for improving an individual’s capacity to get and also maintain employment.
In addition to that, affordable housing enables people to continue living in areas that they have been living for a long time. This is very useful, especially in life changing circumstances such as retirement or divorce.
4. Stronger labor force
Through affordable housing, the employees are going to be able to live near their respective employment centers and this leads to a stronger labor force. The work is also going to be done quickly since the people are living in the immediate environment and can get to work quickly.
On the other hand, affordable housing could possibly lead to an increase in traffic due to the increased number of people living in one neighborhood.
