The Destructive Path of Housing Blight: How Blight Affects Our City
5 December 2018
by Lauren Morgan
Neighborhood and residential vacancies are seemingly becoming more and more common within our country and cities, particularly in Birmingham. Cities like New Orleans and Chicago tend to lead the way in this issue. Vacant property is one the most visible signs of urban decline. Vacant properties do affect the financial standing of the neighborhoods and cities, but what is also important is the reputation and image the blighted properties create for the area.
Neighborhoods such as College Hills and Bush Hills in Birmingham are unfortunately littered with blighted properties. This, however, does not damage the passion and drive for a prettier neighborhood from the residents of this area. Many people living in these mostly blighted neighborhoods are yearning to fix the issues that surround their homes. Often, these houses are blighted due to neglect from out of town owners or properties that were abandoned and never resold. However, the largest contributor of housing blight is the cost that it takes to upkeep a home.
A main component to stopping housing blight is barring the outpricing of residents in the Birmingham area. As the city grows, so do the price tags on homes in the area. If these numbers continue to grow, there will be significantly be more blighted areas due to homeowners and landlords no longer being able to afford the upkeep that their property needs. This ultimately leads to a decline in people wanting to live in Birmingham. Below you will find Figure 1, taken from a 2014 study of the housing and neighborhoods in Birmingham, where you can see that 15% out of 30% of voter data collected said they do not have pride for Birmingham due to the rundown buildings throughout the city.
Figure 1
In this same study, it is said that Birmingham has 59,897 households living in poverty, representing a 28.9% poverty rate; up 4.2% from 2000. If this poverty rate continues as it has, it will only result in more blighted neighborhoods. Foreclosure is on the rise, which means more demolition of blighted properties. This might seem like a good solution, but empty lots can also become a victim of blight. One of the many proposed solutions to divert the path of housing blight is the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program. This is the largest affordable housing program in the county. The program entices the private sector into the affordable housing development market by offering tax credits in exchange for investing in affordable housing. In Figure 2, also provided by the housing and neighborhood study in 2014, you will see a list of neighborhoods in the Birmingham area facing the most physical problems. These neighborhoods might benefit most from the LIHTC.
Figure 2
Blight is unfortunately a difficult issue to tackle without consistent work being done to abolish it. Housing blight is a problem that cities have faced for decades, and it will continue to be exacerbated if cities do not issue a plan to fix it. We are hopeful for the city of Birmingham, as they are regularly discussing ways to downsize the effect that blight has. Although initiatives such as 100 Homes, 100 Days have not yet begun, these only bring us confidence that our city realizes the issues at hand and is gaining control of what can be done to strengthen our community.