Defining Affordable: A Housing Solutions Podcast

Jaime Albarelli and Robin Martinez
  • 5.0 (16)
  • Non-Profit
  • Series

Defining Affordable: A Housing Solutions Podcast explores the policies, history, and real-world forces behind the chronic—and increasingly severe—shortage of affordable housing in the United States. Hosted by affordable housing professionals Jaime and Robin, the show breaks down complex housing issues and highlights practical solutions for people working in the housing industry, curious listeners who want to better understand the problem, and those navigating the challenges of finding an affordable place to live.

  1. Episode 1

    The Foundation

    In this foundational episode of Defining Affordable, Robin and Jaime step back to unpack how California’s housing crisis became the norm—and why it shouldn’t be. They explore rising rents, stagnant wages, and the growing gap between incomes and housing costs, grounding the conversation in real numbers and everyday experiences. From rent burden to housing scarcity, this episode separates symptoms from root causes and lays the groundwork for understanding how policy decisions shaped today’s affordability challenges. Sources & Further Reading California Housing Shortage (SCPR)Why Housing Costs Are So High in California (CalMatters)Rent Increases Across U.S. Cities (CBS News)The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Homes (National Low Income Housing Coalition)Why The California housing market is so expensive in 2024 (CalMatters)

    24 min

  2. Episode 2

    How did we get here? A Housing History Part I

    This episode of Defining Affordable traces the timeline of how today’s housing crisis was built—from New Deal–era policies that expanded access to homeownership and affordable rentals for some, while deliberately excluding others. Robin and Jaime connect those inequitable policy decisions to the affordability challenges we see today. Covering the period through the 1960s, this episode sets the stage for Part 2, which will dive deeper into urban renewal, housing vouchers, and the modern landscape of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC). Sources & Further Reading The Epic of America — James Truslow Adams (1931)The Color of Law — Richard Rothstein (2017)A History of the American Dream — George W. Bush Presidential CenterA Brief History of Housing Policy in the U.S. — Nurse-Led Care CollaborativeWhy Are Housing Costs So High in California? — CalMattersHomeownership Gaps by Race — Harvard Joint Center for Housing StudiesThe Racial Wealth Gap — NYC Department of HealthHousing and Health: An Overview of the Literature — Health AffairsStructural Racism and Housing Inequities — Public Health ReportsLife Expectancy in the United States: Working-Class Report — U.S. Senate (2025)

    35 min

  3. Episode 3

    How did we get here? A Housing History Part II

    This episode of Defining Affordable traces the shift in U.S. housing policy from the 1950s through the 1990s, as urban renewal and highway projects displaced low-income communities and the Fair Housing Act of 1968 sought to address discrimination. Robin and Jaime examine how the federal government moved away from public housing—citing its visible decline while overlooking chronic underfunding and often blaming residents—and pivoted toward vouchers and market-based solutions. The episode connects these policy choices to today’s affordability challenges and what our cities look like today. Sources and Further Reading: Housing Policy OverviewA Brief History of Housing Policy in the U.S. https://nurseledcare.phmc.org/advocacy/policy-blog/item/641:a-brief-history-of-housing-policy-in-the-u-s.htmFederal Housing Assistance Programs (CRS Report) https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/R41654.htmlUrban Renewal & DisplacementMapping Inequality: Urban Renewalhttps://dsl.richmond.edu/panorama/renewal/#view=0/0/1&viz=cartogram&text=definingUrban Renewal StoryMaphttps://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/20975b3e5ae244bdb4fccd7ce2f4714aUrban Redevelopment and Policy (Journal Article) https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/107808749703300207The Battle of Chicano Park https://www.chicano-park.com/cpscbattleof.htmlHighways, Infrastructure & SegregationRoads to Nowhere: How Infrastructure Built American Inequality https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/feb/21/roads-nowhere-infrastructure-american-inequalitylHow the Interstate Highway System Reinforced Segregation https://www.history.com/articles/interstate-highway-system-infrastructure-construction-segregation4 Ways U.S. Highways Were Designed to Harm Black Communities https://www.cracked.com/article_30222_4-ways-us-highways-were-designed-to-screw-over-black-americans.htmA Forgotten History of How the U.S. Government Segregated America https://www.npr.org/2017/05/03/526655831/a-forgotten-history-of-how-the-u-s-government-segregated-americaSegregation by Design https://www.segregationbydesign.com/Public Housing: History, Decline & DebateA History of Public Housing (NLIHC) https://nlihc.org/resource/public-housing-historyWhy Public Housing Was Set Up to Fail https://www.vox.com/policy/390082/public-housing-america-policy-failure-povertyThe Sabotage of Public Housing https://www.homewardboundvillages.org/the-sabotage-of-public-housing-how-policy-choices-created-todays-crisis/Public Housing: What Went Wrong? https://shelterforce.org/1994/09/01/public-housing-what-went-wrong/The Pruitt-Igoe Myth and the Death Knell of Public Housing https://nhc.org/the-pruitt-igoe-myth-and-the-death-knell-of-public-housing/Fair Housing & Policy ShiftsFair Housing Act Overview (HUD) https://www.hud.gov/helping-americans/fair-housing-act-overviewWhat Is the Faircloth Amendment? https://nextcity.org/urbanist-news/what-is-the-faircloth-amendmentHousing Outcomes & ResearchFamily Options Study (HUD) https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/default/files/pdf/Family-Options-Study-Full-Report.pdf

    40 min

  4. Episode 4

    LIHTC: The gift card that builds affordable housing

    In this episode of Defining Affordable, Jaime and Robin unpack LIHTC—the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program—and explain why it is the main way affordable housing gets built in the U.S. today. Using simple analogies, they break down how tax credits incentivize investors, why developers need them to make affordable housing projects financially viable, and how AMI, or Area Median Income, determines who qualifies. They also explore a key tension: housing can be “affordable” as a program category, but still not be affordable for the person living there. ParticipationCalculate your housing cost burden using HUD’s definition of affordability: Housing Cost ÷ Gross Monthly Income × 100 30% or under = Affordable31%–50% = Rent burdenedOver 50% = Severely rent burdenedSourcesLook up your city's AMI limits : https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il/il2025/select_geography.odnAffordable Housing Basics https://ebho.org/study-room/what-is-affordable-housing/How LIHTC Works https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/98758/lithc_how_it_works_and_who_it_serves_final_2.pdfhttps://www.adventuresincre.com/inside-an-lihtc-investment/https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/il/il2025/select_geography.odnHousing Affordability Research https://nlihc.org/gap – The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Homes (NLIHC)San Diego Salary Data Referenced Public School Teacher Salary: https://www.salary.com/research/salary/benchmark/public-school-teacher-salary/san-diego-caSocial Work Case Manager Salary: https://www.indeed.com/career/social-work-case-manager/salaries/San-Diego--CAMechanic Salaries: https://www.indeed.com/career/mechanic/salaries/San-Diego--CAhttps://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/what-jobs-in-san-diego-pay-for-essential-expenses/509-805ff991-a37b-4550-b096-029e1e7f5a4c

    39 min

  5. Episode 5

    Homelessness Starts With Housing

    Homelessness Starts With Housing In this episode of Defining Affordable, Jaime and Robin explore why the cost of housing is the single strongest predictor of homelessness — and how policy decisions helped create today’s crisis. Through the history of housing policy in the United States — from the New Deal and deinstitutionalization to the loss of SRO housing and major federal funding cuts — they unpack how rising rents and the shortage of deeply affordable homes create the homelessness crisis we see today. The conversation covers: Why rent prices are the strongest predictor of homelessnessThe loss of low-cost housing optionsHow policy decisions shaped today’s crisisWhat “Housing First” means and why it works This episode connects the dots between housing affordability, public policy, and homelessness. Sources and Further Reading: Colburn, Gregg, and Clayton Page Aldern. Homelessness Is a Housing Problem: How Structural Factors Explain U.S. Patterns. University of California Press, 2022. Burt, Martha R. “Helping America’s Homeless: Emergency Shelter or Affordable Housing?” Institute for Research on Poverty, University of Wisconsin–Madison, https://www.irp.wisc.edu/publications/focus/pdfs/foc52b.pdf. “Brief History of Homelessness in the U.S.” Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Magazine, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 2026, https://magazine.publichealth.jhu.edu/2026/brief-history-homelessness-us. “Federal Housing Cuts Left Millions Without Homes.” WRAP, 28 July 2023, https://wraphome.org/2023/07/28/federal-housing-cuts-left-millions-without-homes/. Hartman, Chester, and David Robinson. “Reagan’s Legacy: Homelessness in America.” Shelterforce, 1 May 2004, https://shelterforce.org/2004/05/01/reagans-legacy-homelessness-in-america/. “How Housing Costs Drive Levels of Homelessness.” The Pew Charitable Trusts, 22 Aug. 2023, https://www.pew.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2023/08/22/how-housing-costs-drive-levels-of-homelessness. “How States and Cities Decimated America’s Lowest-Cost Housing Option.” The Pew Charitable Trusts, July 2025, https://www.pew.org/en/research-and-analysis/issue-briefs/2025/07/how-states-and-cities-decimated-americans-lowest-cost-housing-option. “Homelessness in America.” Places Journal, https://placesjournal.org/article/tent-city-america/. “State of Homelessness: 2025 Edition.” National Alliance to End Homelessness, https://endhomelessness.org/state-of-homelessness/. Tsai, Jack, et al. “Housing and Homelessness in the United States.” National Library of Medicine, 2023, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10574586/. Accessed 12 May 2026.

    42 min

  6. Episode 6

    California Governor Candidates on Housing: What They’re Actually Proposing

    California’s housing shortage and affordability problems are front and center in the 2026 governor’s race. In this episode of Defining Affordable, Jaime and Robin break down where the top candidates stand on housing affordability, homelessness, zoning reform, accountability, and development policy. From deregulation and transit-oriented development to tenant protections and first-time homeownership, the candidates offer very different solutions to the same crisis. We unpack the policies, discuss what feels realistic, and share our thoughts on what the candidates gets right — and wrong — when it comes to housing. Works CitedCalMatters. “California’s Top Governor Candidates Are Finally Talking About Housing.” CalMatters, May 2026. https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/05/california-governor-housing-2026-yimby/ CalMatters. “Where California Governor Candidates Stand on Homelessness.” CalMatters, May 2026. https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/05/ca-governor-candidates-homelessness/ CalMatters. “HUD PIT Count 2024.” CalMatters, January 2025. https://calmatters.org/housing/homelessness/2025/01/hud-pit-count-2024/ Los Angeles Times. “2026 California Governor Candidate Housing & Homelessness Guide.” Los Angeles Times, May 2026. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-05-01/2026-california-election-governor-candidates-housing-homelessness-voter-guide Politico. “Buckshot or Moonshot? Democratic Candidates to Replace Newsom Offer Grand Plans for More Housing.” Politico, May 2026. https://www.politico.com/news/2026/05/07/buckshot-or-moonshot-dem-candidates-to-replace-newsom-offer-grand-plans-for-more-housing-00909349 RAND Corporation. Building Affordable Housing in California Faster and More Efficiently. RAND, 2025. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA3743-1.html Regional Task Force on Homelessness. “New RTFH Data Shows That in November the Number of People Who Moved Off the Streets and Into Housing Outpaced the Number of People Who Fell Into Homelessness.” RTFHSD.org. https://www.rtfhsd.org/new-rtfh-data-shows-that-in-november-the-number-of-people-who-moved-off-the-streets-and-into-housing-outpaced-the-number-of-people-who-fell-into-homelessness/ Candidate Websites Xavier Becerra https://www.xbvolunteer.com/ Steve Hilton https://stevehiltonforgovernor.com/ Chad Bianco https://www.biancoforgovernor.com/ Matt Mahan https://www.mahanforcalifornia.com/ Katie Porter https://katieporter.com/ Tom Steyer https://www.tomsteyer.com/

    43 min

  7. Episode 7

    Strong Opinions, Weak Facts: Debunking Homelessness Myths

    What if everything you thought you knew about homelessness was wrong? Jaime and Robin tackle some of the most common — and most harmful — myths surrounding homelessness, using data and policy history to separate fact from fear-driven narratives. From the misconception that homelessness is caused by “bad choices” or drug use, to the belief that people “just don’t want help,” this conversation digs into the real drivers of housing insecurity: skyrocketing rents, a housing shortage, and decades of eroding social safety nets. Along the way, they unpack why veterans programs have succeeded, why homelessness is rising among seniors and families, and why compassion backed by evidence matters more than ever. If you’ve ever wondered how people end up unhoused — or why the crisis keeps growing — this episode will challenge assumptions and change the way you see homelessness in America. Sources and Further Reading: American Addiction Centers. “Substance Abuse by City.” American Addiction Centers, 2023, https://americanaddictioncenters.org/blog/substance-abuse-by-city Addiction Center. “Top 10 States With the Highest Overdose Rates.” AddictionCenter.com, https://www.addictioncenter.com/community/top-10-states-highest-overdose/ California Health Care Foundation / CalMatters. “Federal Homelessness Report Delayed Amid National Housing Crisis.” CalMatters, May 2026, https://calmatters.org/housing/homelessness/2026/05/homelessness-report-delayed/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Drug Overdose Deaths by State.” CDC National Center for Health Statistics, https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/state-stats/deaths/drug-overdose.html Culhane, Dennis, et al. “California Statewide Study of People Experiencing Homelessness (CASPEH).” National Library of Medicine / NIH, 2023, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10574586/ National Alliance to End Homelessness. “State of Homelessness: 2024 Edition.” EndHomelessness.org, https://endhomelessness.org/state-of-homelessness/ National Alliance to End Homelessness. “Employed and Experiencing Homelessness: What the Numbers Show.” EndHomelessness.org, https://endhomelessness.org/blog/employed-and-experiencing-homelessness-what-the-numbers-show/ NBC San Diego. “Nevada Settles ‘Homeless Dumping’ Lawsuit.” NBC San Diego, https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/nevada-settles-homeless-dumping-lawsuit/62120/ Pew Charitable Trusts. “How Housing Costs Drive Levels of Homelessness.” Pew Research & Analysis, Aug. 22, 2023, https://www.pew.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2023/08/22/how-housing-costs-drive-levels-of-homelessness Los Angeles Times. “West Virginia vs. Los Angeles: Addiction and Homelessness.” Los Angeles Times, Oct. 5, 2023, https://www.latimes.com/homeless-housing/story/2023-10-05/drug-addiction-homelessness-opioids-west-virginia-vs-los-angeles Los Angeles Times. “Police Moved Homeless People Out of Downtown San Diego.” Los Angeles Times Archives, May 10, 1990, https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-05-10-me-1536-story.html Kaiser Family Foundation. “Five Key Facts About People Experiencing Homelessness.” KFF, https://www.kff.org/medicaid/five-key-facts-about-people-experiencing-homelessness/ United States Interagency Council on Homelessness. “Data & Trends.” USICH.gov, https://usich.gov/guidance-reports-data/data-trends U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. “How We Can End Veteran Homelessness.” VA.gov, https://department.va.gov/homeless/how-we-can-end-veteran-homelessness/

    43 min

  8. Episode 8

    Work Vs. Wealth: Why Homeownership Keeps Moving Out of Reach

    For decades, homeownership was one of the primary ways Americans built wealth. Today, even people with good jobs and steady incomes are finding it increasingly difficult to buy a home. In this episode, Robin and Jaime explore how we got here. They unpack the housing boom and crash of 2008, the rise of mortgage-backed securities, and the role investors played in reshaping the housing market. Along the way, they examine a surprising reality of the pre-crash era: borrowers could often qualify for mortgages with little to no income verification and no down payment at all. The conversation also challenges a common political talking point—that institutional investors are the primary reason homeownership is out of reach. While investors are certainly part of the story, the deeper issue lies in decades of policy decisions that have widened the gap between wealth and work. As Robin puts it, opportunities created by wealth are growing exponentially, while opportunities created by work are shrinking. What does that mean for the future of homeownership—and is there still a path forward? In Part 1 of this two-part series, we examine how we got here. In Part 2, we'll explore emerging models that could help more people build wealth and access homeownership in a changing economy. Sources & Continued Reading Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS)Handbook Chapter on Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS)https://www.fhfa.gov/Media/PublicAffairs/Documents/Handbook_chapter_on_MBS_slides_final.pdf The 2008 Financial CrisisFederal Reserve History: The Great Recession and Its Aftermathhttps://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/great-recession-and-its-aftermathHistory.com: What Caused the 2008 Financial Crisis?https://www.history.com/articles/2008-financial-crisis-causes K-Shaped EconomyEncyclopædia Britannica: What Is a K-Shaped Economy?https://www.britannica.com/money/k-shaped-economyFederal Reserve Bank of New York: Explaining the K-Shaped Economy: What's Behind the Divide?https://libertystreeteconomics.newyorkfed.org/2026/05/explaining-the-k-shaped-economy-whats-behind-the-divide/

    1h 3m
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Defining Affordable: A Housing Solutions Podcast explores the policies, history, and real-world forces behind the chronic—and increasingly severe—shortage of affordable housing in the United States. Hosted by affordable housing professionals Jaime and Robin, the show breaks down complex housing issues and highlights practical solutions for people working in the housing industry, curious listeners who want to better understand the problem, and those navigating the challenges of finding an affordable place to live.

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