Boston, MA — A new white paper from the Asset Builders Alliance was released, outlining practical ways affordable housing communities can help residents with low incomes build savings while they rent.

The paper, Building Financial Assets for Residents in LIHTC Communities, focuses on properties financed through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) – the nation’s largest program for creating affordable rental housing. While LIHTC has helped house millions of families, most renters still have few opportunities to build financial assets. The new research explores how affordable housing properties could change that.

Across the scenarios studied, renters could accumulate roughly $2,000 to $6,000 in savings over five years through tools such as rent rebates, annual savings bonuses, and reserve funds built into property financing. Many of these approaches could be implemented using existing housing policies and financing structures.

The research also highlights a potential financial benefit for property owners. Evictions can cost more than $5,000 per unit, meaning that preventing even a few evictions each year could offset the cost of a modest asset-building program.

The Asset Builders Alliance recommends that housing agencies and property owners begin with pilot programs, test different models, and use existing policy tools to support asset-building programs in affordable housing. State housing agencies may already have many of the tools needed to start.