"The welfare of humanity is always the alibi of tyrants" - Albert Camus

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Update on HUD's Homelessness Prevention Initiative

As I wrote earlier, HUD recently announced Obama Administration's national strategic plan to prevent and end homelessness.  According to their latest announcement, HUD will be giving local governments and non-profit agencies participating in the department’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) preference to acquire homes from its inventory of foreclosed properties at discounted rates. 

The initial cost of this ingenious program is only a paltry $190 million (but not to worry, with the near perfect track record of federal government, the actual costs will surely be in the billions, plus we all know historically how wonderful government housing initiatives have turned out!). 

Hmmm, lets see....government buying their own foreclosures to get foreclosures off the books and creating tons of public housing in the process in the name of ending homelessness.  What could ever go wrong with that!?!

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P.S.  Has anyone given a thought to why the chronically homeless (as of 2005 estimated at 740,000 - including the temporarily homeless - or 0.002% of the population) are homeless, and whether they are suitable for home ownership (like the majority of the chronically homeless who are suffering from mental illness)?

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