National Housing Act of 1934 in the context of "Housing segregation in the United States"

⭐ In the context of housing segregation in the United States, the National Housing Act of 1934 is considered…

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⭐ Core Definition: National Housing Act of 1934

The National Act of 1934, H.R. 9620, Pub. L. 73–479, 48 Stat. 1246, enacted June 27, 1934, also called the Better Housing Program, was part of the New Deal passed during the Great Depression in order to make housing and home mortgages more affordable. It created the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation (FSLIC).

The Act was designed to stop the tide of bank foreclosures on family homes during the Great Depression. With this, President Franklin D. Roosevelt used this act to fulfill his goal towards a government program funded by private investments, avoiding the reliance on taxpayer funds. The passing of the bill alleviated unemployment by making credit more accessible through banks and lending organizations. Both the FHA and the FSLIC became the main federal agencies that worked to create the backbone of the mortgage and home building industries, until the 1980s. The FHA's guarantee against losses for mortgage lenders allowed for a system of regular monthly mortgage payments. The FHA mortgage insurance program became an effective strategy for increasing investment in the mortgage market and still continues to be. (See Savings and loan crisis and Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 that ended the FSLIC, whose activities were moved to the FDIC.)

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👉 National Housing Act of 1934 in the context of Housing segregation in the United States

In the United States, housing segregation is the practice of denying African Americans and other minority groups equal access to housing through the process of misinformation, denial of realty and financing services, and racial steering. Housing policy in the United States has influenced housing segregation trends throughout history. Key legislation includes the National Housing Act of 1934, the G.I. Bill, and the Fair Housing Act. Factors such as socioeconomic status, spatial assimilation, and immigration contribute to perpetuating housing segregation. The effects of housing segregation include relocation, unequal living standards, and poverty. However, there have been initiatives to combat housing segregation, such as the Section 8 housing program.

Racial residential segregation doubled from 1880 to 1940. Southern urban areas were the most segregated. Segregation was highly correlated with lynchings of African-Americans. Segregation lowered homeownership rates for both blacks and whites and boosted crime rates. Areas with housing segregation had worse health outcomes for both whites and blacks. Residential segregation accounts for a substantial share of the black-white gap in birth weight. Segregation reduced upward economic mobility.

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National Housing Act of 1934 in the context of Federal Housing Administration

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA), also known as the Office of Housing within the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), is a United States government agency founded by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, established in part by the National Housing Act of 1934. Its primary function is to provide insurance for mortgages originated by private lenders for various types of properties, including single-family homes, multifamily rental properties, hospitals, and residential care facilities. FHA mortgage insurance serves to safeguard these private lenders from financial losses. In the event that a property owner defaults on their mortgage, FHA steps in to compensate the lender for the outstanding principal balance.

Under this insurance arrangement, lenders assume a diminished level of risk, thereby allowing them to offer a larger number of mortgages. The primary mission of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) is to facilitate access to reasonably priced mortgage financing, with a particular focus on individuals with low to moderate incomes and those embarking on their first home purchase. Furthermore, the FHA lends its support to the construction of both affordable and market-rate rental properties, along with the establishment of hospitals and residential care facilities, not only in communities throughout the United States but also in its territories.

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National Housing Act of 1934 in the context of Housing Act of 1937

The Housing Act of 1937 (Pub. L. 75–412, 50 Stat. 888, enacted September 1, 1937), formally the "United States Housing Act of 1937" and sometimes called the Wagner–Steagall Act, provided for subsidies to be paid from the United States federal government to local public housing agencies (LHAs) to improve living conditions for low-income families.

The act created the United States Housing Authority within the U.S. Department of the Interior. The act builds on the National Housing Act of 1934, which created the Federal Housing Administration. Both the 1934 Act and the 1937 Act were influenced by American housing reformers of the period, with Catherine Bauer Wurster chief among them. Bauer drafted much of this legislation and served as a Director in the United States Housing Authority, the agency created by the 1937 Act to control the payment of subsidies, for two years.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Housing segregation in the United States ← Federal Housing Administration ← Housing Act of 1937
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Act of Congress → United States Statutes at Large → New Deal → Great Depression → Housing → Mortgage loan → Federal Housing Administration → Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation → Savings and loan crisis → Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 → FDIC →