A new report published by HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research, Status and Prospects of the Nonprofit Housing Sector, examines its evolution and considers its role in achieving future affordable housing and community development objectives. The study found a lack of comprehensive and consistent data on the nonprofit sector. The report notes that many housing nonprofits have moved beyond a narrow focus on housing production to offer a more comprehensive range of services. Because of their community perspective, housing nonprofits are viewed by many involved in serving low-income populations as being uniquely able to effectively manage or arrange social services for their clients. However, the report points out that little data exists on the actual performance of nonprofits in coordinating or delivering nondevelopment services.
Several barriers exist to nonprofit capacity in housing development.
Federal support, on which many nonprofits depend, is shaky. Nonetheless, strong funding for such mainstays of nonprofit financing as HOME and Community Development Block Grant Programs, seems to signal a continuity of commitment to community-based housing initiatives. Furthermore, compiling a variety of funding sources can drive up project costs and distort project choices, although the preferences provided by some funding sources can give nonprofits a competitive advantage over for-profit developers. Nonetheless, the report finds that the professionalism and potential of the nonprofit sector clearly expanded during the 1980s, although they remain unevenly distributed. This increase in capacity has been aided substantially by the appearance of national and local intermediary and support organizations that encourage new local partnerships, provide technical assistance, and marshal private capital.