The city of Austin is doing something to help people who have been affected by gentrification. A program starting in 2019 will give money to people who qualify to buy a home. If you apply, you must be making less than the median income for a family in Austin and have been affected by gentrification or have generational ties to the city. The city is using a study from 2018 to figure out which areas of Austin have been affected by gentrification. These neighborhoods include parts of St. Johns, E. Cesar Chavez, S. Lamar, and Rundberg, plus large sections of East Austin and Southeast Austin near the airport. To qualify, applicants will receive an overall score and then be offered the opportunity to qualify for a mortgage and buy a home owned by the city’s affordable housing arm. The city has 28 properties available, all of which will be run as what’s called a community land trust. This is where a government entity or a nonprofit owns the land and sells only the house, keeping the price of the home lower than if it were to be sold in the traditional market. Although this policy, in part, focuses on people displaced from changing neighborhoods, those who apply won’t necessarily be able to return to those neighborhoods; it will depend on the location of the homes available.
Many of the properties the city has to sell are in Northwest Austin, not East Austin, where much of the effects of gentrification have been felt. It’s not necessarily a perfect solution to gentrification. It’s not ideal because people obviously left probably a long time ago. Their connection to the area may not be as strong. I feel that the new policy to help residents affected by gentrification is a step in the right direction. However, I believe that more should be done to help those who have been displaced by gentrification. The city should set aside land specifically for Latinos who want to return to their communities, and they should offer lower mortgage rates and down payment assistance. Austin’s family median income is too high, and many Latinos who have been gentrified out of their homes cannot afford to return. The city should also invest in more affordable housing developments in neighborhoods that have been affected by gentrification so that people who want to stay in their communities can do so. The effects of gentrification have been felt by many Austinites, especially those in East Austin. While the city is taking steps to help those affected by gentrification, more needs to be done.
By Diane Revilla
