Housing

Rural Housing Challenges and Opportunities

There is, perhaps, no more challenging issue in rural communities than maintaining and expanding access to quality housing.  The type of housing doesn’t matter:  single-family owner-occupied, market rate rentals, affordable rentals or senior housing.  It’s a challenge in rural Iowa due to the inherent risk in sparsely-populated areas and the difficulty financing these projects.

In Iowa, there are resources for rural communities seeking to address their housing needs.  It can be as simple as an initial call to a Council of Government or Regional Planning Commission, a conversation with ISU Extension about its Rural Housing Readiness Assessment, or a call to Housing 360 with its strategy of new construction on infill lots.

• Iowa Association of Councils of Government 
• ISU Rural Housing Readiness Assessment
• Rural Housing 360

The Iowa Rural Development Council is prepared to leverage its members and partners to support rural communities seeking solutions to housing issues.

Resources and Partners

There are many resource providers when it comes to rural housing:  There are federal agencies like the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the US Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development agency (RD), state agencies including Iowa Economic Development Authority and the Iowa Finance Authority, and associations, developers and non-profits such as Iowa Habitat for Humanity.

Yet, often a first step for communities mulling their housing situation is a search for information — both about themselves and the resources they can contact.  A local asset might be a banker, a realtor or Chamber director.  Statewide and nationally, other organizations exist to provide support.

• Housing Assistance Council Rural Data Portal
• Iowa Bankers Housing Stats
• USDA Rural Development

Case Studies and News Items

Sometimes the best solutions are just down the road.  Many rural Iowa communities are implementing innovative solutions to address their housing needs.  Those case studies and best practices can be a roadmap for other communities – if they know where to look!

• Home for Iowa
• Rural Iowa has a housing crisis. Here’s how a handful of communities are solving it
• Rural Housing 360 offered as one solution to the city’s housing needs 

• In Iowa free land giveaways can be imperfect fix for rural housing shortage

• For aging Iowans, staying near home is both a challenge and opportunity in rural Iowa