Jorge H. Atiles

Not a Trailer Anymore: Perceptions of Manufactured Housing

Abstract Manufactured housing, commonly called mobile homes or trailers, offers an affordable housing alternative for many low‐ and moderate‐income households. Although such housing is built to U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development standards, local communities and states often regulate placement. This article reports on a statewide study that profiled Virginia residents of single‐section and double‐section manufactured housing and compared their perceptions of that housing with the perceptions of other community residents. Double‐section residents had more education and higher incomes and were more likely to own their home and the land it was on than single‐section residents. Community residents had persistently negative opinions about the impact of manufactured housing on their community. Given the many challenges communities and the manufactured housing industry face in using these units to provide low‐cost housing, negative impressions, such as poor design, aging units, and “trailer” parks, must be addressed to improve acceptance.

Predisposing, Enabling, and Need Predictors of Community versus Institutional Long-Term Care

Abstract This research explored characteristics of the elderly that are associated with the use of long-term care services. Using the 1999 National Long Term Care Survey, logistic regression was employed to examine the relationship of race with the use of formal and informal long-term care. This study also examined the relationship of health insurance with the use of formal and informal long-term care. The Andersen Model on health services utilization was used as the theoretical framework. The findings indicated that race was not associated with the use of long-term care but rather with predisposing, enabling, and need variables. Health insurance was found to be associated with the use of long-term care even after controlling for predisposing enabling and need variables.

Rural Workforce Housing: Perceived Barriers and Incentives for Development

Abstract The lack of affordable housing has been perceived as a barrier for economic development in rural areas where there is a shortage of housing for the workforce. This article reported the results of a series of Town Hall meetings where workforce housing issues were discussed and the results of an e-mail survey of members of the Georgia Economic Developers Association (GEDA). The GEDA provided a statewide framework linking both public and private organizations with shared interests in economic development. Participants in the Town Hall meetings as well as the economic developers who responded to the survey were not convinced that housing is a key to economic development. Many of the respondents in both groups agreed that there was an inadequate supply of housing types. However, a substantial proportion in both groups thought that there was too much of certain housing types. Relatively high percentages in both groups were unaware of housing finance programs and other incentives to create workforce housing. Both groups identified several important challenges to developing rural workforce housing and felt that funds available to assist with the development of single family and multi-family housing were insufficient to meet current and future demand.

A Qualitative Approach for Assessing Receptivity to Federal Housing Initiatives: The Focus Group Technique

AbstractThis paper examines the use of a qualitative research method, the focus group technique, as an option for obtaining perceptual data. Potential HOPE 3 program participants were engaged in a focus group setting to determine the feasibility of this major housing initiative for homeownership. The basics of qualitative research in general, the results obtainable from the use of qualitative research, the process involved in utilizing the focus group technique, and the methodology and results of an actual session using the focus group technique are presented. The information collected is presented expressly to illustrate the focus group technique, which allows possible controversial topics to be discussed in an open and positive manner. The scenario also provides confidentiality for the sponsoring agencies, organizations, and participating households. The focus group technique proved to be an excellent technique for assessing attitudes, preferences, and housing needs in a community that traditionally has...

The transitioning nature of Hispanic renters

Abstract In the 1980, 1990, and 2000 censuses, Hispanic households had the lowest rate of homeownership of any major ethnic group. Since 2000, however, growth in Hispanic homeownership has outpaced that of other groups. This article uses a four‐stage transitional framework to examine Hispanic home‐ownership progression: renting without plans to buy; renting with plans to buy, but not actively saving; renting while saving for a home; and owning a home. Data from the Survey of Consumer Finances indicate that, after we control for other demographic factors, Hispanic renters are much more likely to be actively saving to buy a home than either non‐Hispanic white or non‐Hispanic black renters. However, Hispanic households are less likely to move from the saving to the owning stage. We find evidence of three explanations for this phenomenon: informational barriers to credit, purchase of foreign homes, and recent entry into the saving stage.

Homeownership Plans Among Hispanic Renters: Ethnic or Geographic Differences?

Abstract From 2000–2005, growth in Hispanic homeownership in the United States outpaced other racial and ethnic groups. This corresponds with data from the Survey of Consumer Finances indicating that Hispanic renters experienced a dramatic upsurge in saving for homeownership—relative to renters of other racial and ethnic backgrounds—during the 1998,2001, and 2004 surveys. This relatively higher propensity to save for homeownership largely disappeared in the 2007 survey. Correspondingly, in the second half of the decade Hispanic homeownership fellfaster than did non-Hispanic homeownership. The “bubble” in Hispanic renter homeownership plans corresponded with relative housing price appreciation trends in states with large Hispanic populations such as California and Florida. This suggests that the move to saving for homeownership among Hispanic households may have been primarily a regional economic trend, rather than an ethnic one.